The World Health Organisation launched on the 28 March 2006 in Beijing a Global Alliance to fight chronic respiratory diseases through a comprehensive and coordinated approach.
The Global Alliance against Chronic Respiratory Diseases (GARD) is a voluntary alliance of internationally recognized organizations, institutions, and agencies from developing and developed countries working to improve lung health, worldwide. The Global Alliance is an initiative of the World Health Organisation.
The Global Alliance will make recommendations for providing simple and affordable strategies for the diagnosis and management of chronic respiratory diseases in all countries. GARD will also aim to improve coordination between existing governmental and nongovernmental programs, to avoid duplication of efforts and wasting of resources.
Up until now, the World Health Organisation initiatives have focused mainly on infectious diseases. Cronic Respiratory Diseases is the first chronic disease group to be addressed by a WHO initiative.
Representatives of the European Federation of Allergy and Airways Diseases Patients Associations (EFA), an EPHA member, attended the launch of the Global Alliance against Chronic Respiratory Diseases.