COPENHAGEN, Oct. 26 (Xinhua) -- Health ministers and delegates from the World Health Organization's (WHO) European Region on Thursday endorsed a new "practical and adaptable" roadmap for action on antimicrobial resistance (AMR), according to a press release from the WHO Regional Office for Europe here.
Adopted during the 73rd session of the WHO Regional Committee for Europe, the new roadmap aims to double down with "swift action to avert a disastrous outcome" from the increasing threat of AMR.
AMR, according to the WHO, poses a significant threat to both human and animal health worldwide and the misuse and overuse of antimicrobial medications, meanwhile, accelerate AMR.
The roadmap advocates interventions ranging from traditional measures, such as improving hygiene and vaccination, to using whole genome sampling to improve environmental surveillance.
Robb Butler, director of WHO Europe's Division of Communicable Diseases, Environment and Health, underscored the critical need to combat AMR, a phenomenon frequently referred to as the "silent pandemic."
"The road ahead is not an easy one, but we are ready to move forward as one region, guided by the new AMR regional roadmap, working towards our vision that by 2030, people and animals will be safer from hard-to-treat resistant infections and will benefit from healthier environments." ■