International Health Regulations (IHR)

1 Introduction

A revision of the International Health Regulations, referred to as IHR(2005), was unanimously adopted on 23 May 2005 by the World Health Assembly and these Regulations are scheduled to enter into force in June 2007.

The broadened purpose and scope of the IHR(2005) are to prevent, protect against, control and provide a public health response to the international spread of disease and which avoid unnecessary interference with international traffic and trade. 

New mandates require Member States to develop, strengthen and maintain core surveillance and response capacities to detect, assess, notify and report public health events to the World Health Organisation (WHO) and respond to public health risks and public health emergencies. WHO, in turn, is to collaborate with States Parties to evaluate their public health capacities, facilitate technical cooperation, logistical support and the mobilization of financial resources for building capacity in surveillance and response.

2 What are the problems and challenges we will face?

Reality one: IHR regulations are written in complex confusing language that most people have difficulty understanding and complying with. This includes your staff, suppliers, contractors, lawyers, translators and consultants.

Reality two: There are unnecessary costs for not complying and ‘ignorance’ is no excuse in the eyes of the law.

Reality three: There is a simple system that will help your people ensure:

This system is called Mustor Management and is governed by the MIS 10 000 standard.

At the 2005 International Plain Legal Language Conference in Washington DC , the conference summary speaker Mr Christopher Balmford, described Mustor Management as “the most exciting development in our field at the moment”. 

This system will make it easier for your people to: