"“Assuming everything goes well in containing this outbreak, which I hope it does, the takeaway from that should not be we're fine,' said Stephanie Psaki, former White House global health security coordinator. We're not ready for this type of threat. Many of the people at health agencies who plan for a quick response to outbreaks, and the systems supporting them, are gone now, Psaki noted.”"
"“Yet this is just one of many, many pathogens. These types of things will continue happening. And, she pointed out, there's a 50/50 chance of another pandemic at least as bad as Covid in the next 25 years, according to scientific models. Examining the mistakes and the progress made during the Covid pandemic can help us prepare for the next big one, Psaki and other former top US officials said at a recent event in Washington DC.”"
"“Misinformation is one of the greatest challenges facing public health. Conspiracy theories and rumors aren't new; even the Milan plague around 1630 had its share. But the only difference between hundreds of years ago is social media, said Anthony Fauci, former chief medical adviser to the president and former director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. We're just being overwhelmed with misinformation online, he said, calling it a real problem which I don't see any easy solution to.”"
"“People don't often relate to rigorous studies with methods sections, statistical analyses, and 17 supplementary figures in the New England Journal of Medicine, but they frequently relate to social media influencers pushing fake cures, Fauci said. It's stunning. It's painful, but it's true that somebody on social media who's a trusted influencer will outflank any sc”"
A hantavirus outbreak is unlikely to become the next major pandemic, but it reveals weaknesses in US public health readiness. Testing capacity for rare diseases, outbreak prevention and response expertise, and the ability to counter misinformation and rebuild trust have declined. Many personnel at health agencies who planned for rapid outbreak response and the supporting systems are no longer in place. Even with successful containment, similar threats will continue. Scientific models indicate a roughly 50/50 chance of another pandemic at least as severe as Covid within the next 25 years. Misinformation is a major challenge, amplified by social media, where trusted influencers can spread fake cures faster than rigorous scientific evidence.
Read at www.theguardian.com
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]