The PAHO establishes key networks to improve early detection of pathogens in the Americas.
The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) has led the initiative of the first meeting of the Regional Genomic Surveillance Networks of the PAHO (PAHOGen) to strengthen surveillance of emerging pathogens in the Americas. This strategic collaboration, supported by the Wellcome Trust, highlights the essential role of PAHO and its surveillance networks in the protection of regional and global public health.
The focus on genomic surveillance is of utmost importance to rapidly detect emerging pathogens and understand antimicrobial resistance. PAHO has worked closely with Member States to improve sequencing capacity in regional and national laboratories, generating accurate data to strengthen surveillance systems.
In this sense, networks such as PulseNet Latin America and the Caribbean (PNALC) and the Antimicrobial Resistance Surveillance Network (RELAVRA+) highlight the commitment of the PAHO with public health in the region. The implementation of specialized networks, such as COVIGEN for COVID-19 and RESVIGEN for respiratory viruses, underscores their adaptation to emerging challenges.
The meeting, held in Brasilia, brought together 120 experts from 26 countries and territories to share experiences and strategies for improving data collection and information quality. Collaboration between epidemiology and clinical practice was highlighted during the meeting, as was its importance for achieving better data integration into public health policies.
In this way the PAHO continues to push forward with genomic surveillance of pathogens, establishing a plan to improve surveillance and sequencing capacity. In this regard, Dr. Jairo Méndez, leader of the project "Establishing Genomic Epidemiology Centers in Latin America," highlighted the support of the PAHO and the Wellcome Trust, and stressed the need for continued collaboration to improve health in the region.
