We are always called upon to make decisions with insufficient information and make corrections midcourse. Interdependence Disease eradication campaigns illustrate the value of working as global citizens rather than as a collection of national programs. First promoted by the Soviet Union in 1958, smallpox eradication did not get the approval of the World Health Assembly until 8 years later in 1966, when it became a joint proposal of the Soviet Union and the United States. No country alone can prevent or control emerging infections. As organisms, the environment, people, and tools change, programs must change.
Appropriate response requires good epidemiologic analysis.
The epidemiology, in turn, can be no better than the facts assembled. Vision With eradication, the vision is no more cases. With emerging infections, the vision is rapid, appropriate, effective response, being prepared to protect the world because you are ready to act. Performance With eradication, to get global support, we must demonstrate that a disease can be eliminated from a geographic area. With all our experience, we have not gone far on the road to eradicating disease.