In an online seminar organized to inform its members, the Patras Medical Association hosted veterinarian Eleni Pavlidou, President of the Mediterranean Innovation Center for One Health and President of “Asclepius One Health,” on Wednesday, June 5th. The seminar, titled “Presentation of the One Health Program of the World Health Organization,” was held as part of the collaboration between the Patras Medical Association and the World Health Organization.
In her speech, Ms. Pavlidou discussed the initiatives that led to the establishment of the Mediterranean Innovation Center for One Health (MED-OHC), its scientific fields of action, and its goals, which primarily focus on “addressing regional One Health challenges in the Mediterranean area through innovative actions.”
Additionally, Mrs. Pavlidou extensively discussed the work of Asclepius One Health, emphasizing that “under the common umbrella of One Health, scientific teams from various disciplines collaborate closely to bring innovative solutions. Experts from all fields—Environment, Veterinary Science, Medicine, Economists, Psychologists, Dentists, Wildlife Specialists—these new teams propose new practices that can help populations and states to initially stop the emergence and subsequently the transmission of large-scale health threats, such as a pandemic originating from a zoonotic disease.”
The seminar began with a greeting from the President of the Patras Medical Association and Deputy Regional Governor of Health in the Region of Western Greece, Anna Mastorakou. This was followed by a presentation from Daisy Papathanassopoulou, Coordinator of the Hellenic Intermunicipal Network of Healthy Cities, titled “Introduction to the WHO One Health Policy.” Next, Professor Zoe Tsimtsiou from the Medical School of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki gave a talk titled “One Health: Theoretical Approach through University Education.”
Furthermore, Serkos Haroutounian, Professor at the Agricultural University of Athens and a board member of the Mediterranean Innovation Center for One Health, discussed One Health approaches and health policy in the animal and plant kingdoms, focusing on the contributions of the Mediterranean Innovation Center for One Health.
