What’s Up Health: What role does communication play in implementing the ‘One Health’ concept globally?

LLYC’s global Healthcare team launches a new publication on its What’s Up Health platform. An issue focused on the ‘One Health‘ concept, the new holistic and integrative approach to address global health challenges.

The notion of ‘One Health’ highlights the interconnections that exist between the health of people, animals, and the planet itself, framed by profound mutual interdependencies. For example, two-thirds of emerging human infectious diseases are transmitted from animals to humans -they are zoonotic.

This approach has gained momentum recently, especially after the COVID-19 pandemic. Alejandro González, Healthcare Manager at LLYC Mexico, tells us that implementing it requires the coordinated efforts of health organizations, companies, governments, and society. And in this sense, communication is vital: these types of initiatives can only be carried out if they are accompanied by communication campaigns that generate community awareness.

Adriana Olivares, Communications Director of Bioiberica, identifies three key factors that highlight the growing need for this approach. Population growth, intensive livestock farming, and internationalization explain the increasingly close relationship between human, veterinary, and environmental health.

In this sense, multidisciplinary research that integrates professionals from the three areas is necessary. For Concha Marzo, Director of Government Affairs at Boehringer Ingelheim Spain, this implies sharing information, carrying out joint research, developing disease prevention and control strategies, and promoting public policies that protect the health of all living beings.

A paradigmatic case in applying this approach is the United States, where Congress approved the ‘One Health’ framework at the end of 2022. This is the first time it is intended to be incorporated through federal legislation, thus establishing an essential milestone for developing national health policies. Francisco Marquez, Senior Advisor Healthcare, tells us about the implications for different sectors in the country.

Discover all the full articles in the new publication of the What’s Up Health platform!