Enhancing Infectious Disease Preparedness in Rome: The Lazio Regional Network During the 2025 Jubilee

Tropical Medicine and Infectious Disease · Published 2026-07-26 · DOI 10.3390/tropicalmed11080211

Free full text

Authors (10)

Gaetano Maffongelli, Andrea Bongiovanni, Alessandra D’Abramo, Erica Binetti, Laura Scorzolini, Claudia Palazzolo, Gabriella De Carli, Alessandro Agresta, Francesco Vairo, Emanuele Nicastri

Abstract

In 2025, Rome hosted the Catholic Jubilee, recording over 33 million cumulative pilgrim attendances while simultaneously facing the death of Pope Francis, the election of Pope Leo XIV, and a regional West Nile Virus (WNV) outbreak. This commentary describes the Lazio Region’s preparedness strategy, based on adapting an existing Hub-and-Spoke infectious diseases network integrating surveillance with Regional Service for Epidemiology, Surveillance and Control of Infectious Diseases (SERESMI) laboratory support, telemedicine, and clinical management. Preparatory measures included an additional Hub, updated syndromic pathways, multidisciplinary coordination, and enhanced surveillance. Emergency department visits increased by 14.8%, while the proportion of infectious syndromes remained stable. This experience highlights the potential value of strengthening existing healthcare networks for mass gathering preparedness.

Abstract from DOAJ. Public domain (CC0 1.0).

Read the article at the publisher →

Publication details

Year
2026

Citation

Maffongelli, G., Bongiovanni, A., D’Abramo, A., et al. (2026). Enhancing Infectious Disease Preparedness in Rome: The Lazio Regional Network During the 2025 Jubilee. Tropical Medicine and Infectious Disease. https://doi.org/10.3390/tropicalmed11080211

Related articles