The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has awarded $22 million to nearly 30 organizations around the world to combat antimicrobial resistance (AR) and other healthcare threats through the establishment of two new networks — the Global Action in Healthcare Network (GAIHN) and the Global AR Laboratory and Response Network (Global AR Lab & Response Network).
In explaining the announcement, the CDC said, “These two new networks, paired with additional short-term research projects, will span more than 50 countries worldwide and build programs that focus on preventing infections in healthcare through proven infection control; build laboratory capacity to detect antimicrobial-resistant organisms in healthcare, the community, and environment; and develop new and innovative ways to more rapidly detect and respond to threats like AR and COVID-19.”
The CDC said its vision for the Global Action in Healthcare Network (GAIHN) is to create a global collaborative network of countries, institutions, and partners at global, regional, national, and subnational levels that will address and reduce priority emerging infections in healthcare settings. GAIHN will do so through detection and response, including infection prevention and control.
The new networks will target emerging and existing AR threats, such as healthcare pathogens, drug-resistant enteric pathogens, fungal pathogens, invasive bacterial and respiratory pathogens, and Neisseria gonorrhoeae.
The 28 organizations receiving funding include: American Society for Microbiology (ASM); American Type Culture Collection (ATCC); American University of Beirut; Association of Public Health Laboratories (APHL); Columbia University; Duke University; Family Health International (FHI360); FIOTEC; Global Scientific Solutions for Health; Health Security Partners; Johns Hopkins University; Koperasi Jasa Institut Riset Eijkman; Northwestern University; Pakistan National Institute of Health; Pan American Health Organization (PAHO); The Ohio State University; U.S. Civilian Research & Development Foundation (CRDF); Universidad de Desarrollo; University of Campinas; University of Cantabria; University of Nairobi; University of Oxford; University of Pennsylvania; Vanderbilt University; Washington State University; Washington University in St. Louis; and World Health Organization (WHO).
In addition to these networks, the CDC said it has also “invested in short-term global AR research projects, working with investigators to identify new public health solutions to prevent antimicrobial-resistant infections and their spread. Findings from the global AR innovation projects may later be integrated into the Global AR Lab & Response Network to transform the way the world responds to AR across the One Health spectrum. Read more about the first global AR innovation projects.”
