Research
B Olowokure et al. Chemical incidents of international public health concern
that might be linked with chemicals. Members of GOARN
were included in the chemical network of information sources
because several GOARN members, particularly those in poorly
resourced countries, were responsible for the surveillance and
management of both communicable diseases, as well as acute
chemical incidents.
Each identified event was assessed against IHR criteria,
as described above, by the chemical alert and response team.
If an event was deemed to be of potential international importance,
WHO regional and country offices were contacted to
obtain additional information, including official verification of
the event through the health authorities of the Member State
concerned. Once verified, and depending on the nature of the
event, a decision was taken about the need for a response. Such
a response might include laboratory support (e.g. identification
of a laboratory to carry out analyses, arranging supply
of an analytical standard), on-site epidemiological assistance
(e.g. assistance with investigation, control measures) or the
provision of technical information. The level of response was
determined by several considerations, including the type of
assistance requested by the Member State and the capacity of
WHO and its global network to respond to the event. A final
decision on whether or not to proceed with a response usually
required further consultation with the health authorities of
the Member State, the WHO regional office and the WHO
country representative.