Asia Pacific Strategy for Emerging Diseases (APSED)
The Asia Pacific Strategy for Emerging Diseases (APSED) was developed to strengthen core capacities for emerging infectious disease, and to comply with IHR requirement. APSED is a road map for Asia Pacific countries to strengthen core capacities required for effective preparedness planning, prevention, prompt detection, characterization, containment and control of emerging diseases which threaten national, regional, and global health security. It was endorsed by WHO Member States to facilitate in strengthening core capacity requirements for emerging diseases.
In the Philippines, APSED was implemented in 2007 with five focus areas. Due to the continuing threats from emerging infectious diseases and other public health events, APSED was updated to APSED 2010 and endorsed by the Regional committee meeting in October 2010 to guide national and regional preparedness efforts for future threats. Its goal is “to build sustainable national and regional capacities and partnerships to ensure public health security through preparedness planning, prevention, early detection and rapid response to emerging diseases and other public health emergencies.” From five (5), it now has eight (8) focus areas. These focus areas are surveillance, risk assessment and response; laboratory; zoonoses; infection control; risk communication; public health emergency preparedness and response; regional preparedness, alert and response; as well as monitoring and evaluation.