About International Day of Epidemic Preparedness:
- It is annually observed on December 27 to advocate the importance of prevention of, preparedness for, and partnership against epidemics.
- It highlights the urgent need to invest in systems that can prevent, detect, and respond to infectious disease outbreaks.
- The first-ever International Day of Epidemic Preparedness, held on 27 December 2020, was called for by the United Nations General Assembly to advocate the importance of the prevention of, preparedness for, and partnership against epidemics.
- What is an Epidemic?
- An epidemic is a sudden disease outbreak that affects a large number of people in a particular region, community, or population.
- In an epidemic, the number of people affected by the disease is larger than what is normally expected.
- Yellow fever, smallpox, measles, and polio are prime examples of epidemics.
- An epidemic disease doesn't necessarily have to be contagious.For example, West Nile fever and the rapid increase in obesity rates, both are considered epidemics.
