One Health best practices for addressing health threats at the human–animal–environment interface, with focus on the Eastern Mediterranean Region

One Health threats at the human-animal-environment interface involve zoonotic diseases that spread from animals to humans and may directly impact humans through their intake of food and water or from the environment. The function of One Health is to enhance collaboration, coordination, communication and capacity building among the human health, animal health and environmental sectors, to provide effective disease prevention and control programs and to identify recommendations and practical action plans. Information in this study was compiled from Google Scholar and PubMed to assess the success of the implementation of the One Health approach worldwide. This comprehensive literature review included only peer-reviewed articles published in English within the past 10 y that addressed One Health practices relevant to the Eastern Mediterranean Region. The latest data show that 75% of newly emerging infectious diseases have animal origins, that domestic animals or wildlife are the source of 60% of these pathogens and that animals are the source of 80% of pathogens that pose a bioterrorism threat. Thus the significance of the One Health approach remains ever more urgent to address and mitigate these threats. Country studies from India, Kenya, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Uganda and Zambia showcased multisectoral coordination and collaboration through technical activities in epidemiological surveillance, emergency preparedness and response, joint leadership and risk assessment in response to an outbreak. The World Health Organization Regional Office of the Eastern Mediterranean has rolled out the One Health framework, with some degree of success in certain countries, in response to epidemics, disease prioritization or as a road map for collaboration. However, other countries in the region have yet to adopt the One Health approach. Overall, One Health has demonstrated its value in protecting animals, humans and the environment by pooling expertise from different fields to prevent and control future pandemics.