The WHO Regional Office for Europe (WHO/Europe) has just launched its Public Health and Social Measures (PHSM) Severity Index to provide standardized data on the ways in which countries in the WHO European Region have sought to slow or stop community spread of COVID-19. This latest tool systematically captures and analyses individual governmental PHSM responses to COVID-19 in the 53 countries of the Region.
By presenting epidemiological data and governments’ PHSM interventions the new tool aims to strongly inform countries’ efforts in further strengthening their response to the pandemic.
The PHSM Severity Index is integrated into the WHO regional office’s COVID-19 Dashboard, which allows quick visualization of the most up-to-date COVID-19 statistics and information for each country. It captures six types of public health measures: mask wearing; school closures; office, business, institution and operations closures; gathering restrictions; domestic movement restrictions; and international travel limitations.
The analysis enables a comparison of individual public health measures within a country as well as overall responses across countries. It also allows for the nuances of each individual government’s actions to be analysed and understood. Common PHSM strategies, outliers and emergent patterns can be seen through a regional-level analysis and these insights, supported by country-specific examples, provide a comprehensive overview to inform policy-making.
WHO thanks all donors and partners who have contributed to fund the Strategic Preparedness and Response Plan to combat COVID-19. A special appreciation goes to Member States and other contributors who provided flexible funds, making it possible for WHO to deliver a coherent, strategic and broad response.