International Health Regulations (IHR) Infographic

International Health Regulations (IHR) — Protecting people every day

The International Health Regulations (IHR) represent an agreement between 196 countries, including all WHO Member States, to work together for global health security. Under the IHR, all countries must report events of international public health importance.

The IHR require that all countries can:

• Detect: Make sure surveillance systems and laboratories can detect potential threats
• Assess: Work together with other countries to make decisions in public health emergencies
• Report: Report specific diseases, plus any potential international public health emergencies
• Respond: Respond to public health events

We share a responsibility to protect our world from outbreaks of infectious diseases and other health threats. The goal of the IHR is to stop events in their tracks before they become emergencies.

Source: Report to the Director-General of the Review Committee on Second Extensions for Establishing National Public Health Capacities and on IHR Implementation, November 2014.

CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)