World Pneumonia Day 2018 activities took place in Edinburgh and Bangladesh Despite being largely preventable and treatable, pneumonia is the single biggest infectious cause of death in children worldwide – killing more than diarrhoea and malaria combined. Members of the Usher Institute got involved with World Pneumonia Day, which takes place on 12 November each year, to raise awareness of the disease with activities in Edinburgh and beyond. Edinburgh World Pneumonia Day Symposium We had a fantastic time at the Edinburgh World Pneumonia Day Symposium, hosted by Edinburgh Infectious Diseases. Talks and activities throughout the day highlighted the breadth of ongoing work in Edinburgh, developing new ways to tackle the disease. With a focus on pneumonia, several members of the RESPIRE team presented on the day – including Harry Campbell, Harish Nair, David Dockrell and Steve Cunningham – as well as a showcase of posters from some of our PhD students. The event was also followed by the inaugural lecture from Debby Bogaert. Devi Sridhar recognised as PneumoniaFighter! Congratulations to Devi Sridhar, who was honoured as a ‘PneumoniaFighter!’ by JustACTIONS, announced as part of World Pneumonia Day. Since 2015, JustACTIONS have selected ten individuals each year for their outstanding contribution to advancing the fight to end preventable child pneumonia deaths. Devi was recognised for her “courageous advocacy”. Image RESPIRE events in Bangladesh The Child Health Research Foundation team put together two events to mark the day locally in Bangladesh, including celebrating a number of the RESPIRE research projects in Bangladesh which focus on pneumonia. Over 300 people attended a colourful public rally, which ran over five kilometres with banners, garlands and a decorated horse cart, to raise awareness about pneumonia in the local community. The team also organised a scientific seminar, attracting over 200 healthcare professionals and other stakeholders, to talk about the impact of pneumonia in Bangladesh and the research being conducted by the RESPIRE programme. Related links Find out more about RESPIRE Read the recent article from Devi Sridhar and Kevin Watkins in The Lancet Find out more about World Pneumonia Day on the WHO website Publication date 03 Dec, 2018
