World Pneumonia Day: 12 November 2017

World Pneumonia Day, marked annually on 12 November, aims to highlight the severity of pneumonia. This day was first hosted in 2009 when over 100 organisations joined to form the Global Coalition against Child Pneumonia.

World Pneumonia Day, organized by the World Heath Organisation (WHO), raises awareness about pneumonia, the world’s leading killer of children under the age of five; promotes interventions to protect against, prevent and treat pneumonia; and generates action to combat pneumonia.

Pneumonia is one of the most solvable problems in global health and yet a child dies from the infection every 20 seconds. About 16% of all deaths among children today are attributed to pneumonia, and in 2015 it killed as many as 920,136 children (2,500 children per day).

Most of these deaths could have been averted with appropriate vaccines and precautions. World Pneumonia Day helps brings to light how severe the disease can be.

Pneumonia is an infection in the lungs caused by bacteria, viruses or fungi. The disease can cause excess lung fluid, lung damage, severe breathing problems, and health issues affecting other parts of the body. Pneumonia can also be an indicator of other diseases, such as lung cancer.

WHO and UNICEF have programs for the prevention and treatment of pneumonia, including vaccines. However, the majority of those affected live in communities that do not have easy access to medicines.

Access to treatment does not guarantee avoidance or survival. In America, one million adults are hospitalised with pneumonia every year, and 20% of them do not survive.

Research conducted around the world helps tackle the disease and informs campaigns like World Pneumonia Day, by improving knowledge about its spread and treatment.

MARTINA NICOLLS is an international aid and development consultant, and the author of:- Similar But Different in the Animal Kingdom (2017), The Shortness of Life: A Mongolian Lament (2015), Liberia’s Deadest Ends (2012), Bardot’s Comet (2011), Kashmir on a Knife-Edge (2010) and The Sudan Curse (2009).

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