Medical Council

An Unmoderated Discussion on Handling Other Diseases During the Pandemic

by Audrey A-Asamoah

The Medical Council during the first day of the MUN WEB Conference had a quite fulfilling discussion on other infectious diseases during a pandemic. Even though the Medical Council does not exist in real life, MUN WEB thought it wise to include it in the conference because of the effects COVID-19 has on other diseases such as HIV, Malaria and Tuberculosis (TB). Fighting these diseases has been virtually pushed to the side due to COVID-19 and its rapid mode of spread.

With twelve delegates present from different countries and one delegate from Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF)/Doctors Without Borders (DWB), a simple majority of seven votes were needed to pass the motion to discuss the first topic which is ‘Handling other diseases during the pandemic.’ The Delegate from DWB stated that these three diseases are killing about the same number of people COVID-19 is killing and therefore they need help in trying to fight these diseases. The Delegate from the USA also agreed by saying that due to the serious impact of COVID-19 and its similar symptoms to TB, there have been so many challenges in the prevention of these diseases. The Delegate of France added to this agreement by admitting that France was still overwhelmed by the pandemic despite the plans in place to vaccinate their citizens. The Delegate of Bangladesh also described how COVID-19 had disrupted their economy by killing thousands of people and the lack of enough vaccines for their citizens. The Delegate of Netherlands added to the opening speech by saying these three diseases are the most identifiable and preventable diseases in the world and about five million people die a year from them and was therefore looking forward to working together for solutions.

After the vote, the Delegate from India suggested that all the other delegates could use the opportunity to explain the situations in their respective countries and discuss specific plans to help the situation. The Delegate acknowledged that since the pandemic started, there has been a shortage of medical and treatment supplies to fight malaria, TB and HIV. The Delegate from Germany also stated that the number of deaths from TB exceeded those from COVID-19 and also the fact that malaria had similar symptoms as the coronavirus, these diseases needed to be tackled accordingly to reduce the mortality rate and ensure the health of citizens. The Delegate of China made it clear that a lot of countries do not have enough test kits and vaccinations and also stated that China has seen a reduction in the prevalence of TB and could share its experience . The Delegate of Democratic Republic of Congo also admitted that it was not well equipped to deal with the pandemic, as it lacks adequate healthcare and water facilities and definitely needs more help from the international community. This also put a strain on the medical facilities and personnel available.

A few possible solutions were raised by the delegates on how the situation in more vulnerable countries could be improved. The Delegate of India suggested that developed countries could raise money from their Gross Domestic Product (GDP) which could come from member states and donated to the World Health Organisation (WHO) which would then allocate such funds to developing countries. The Delegate of Netherlands raised concerns that the money should be used for these infectious diseases. The Delegate from India also expressed concern of funding which was mainly used in private facilities rather than public facilities which a majority of people cannot access. The Delegates deliberated on how the following areas could be improved such as; funding, medical infrastructure and medical data of infectious diseases, testing and prevention and would continue with more concrete solutions during the next session. The Chair also advised delegates that more research and vaccine production should be done since HIV had no cure and there was also no vaccine for malaria and HIV. Also training for medical staff should also be increased and more awareness on these diseases should be created.