We also know that there are gaps in our existing public health and healthcare systems around the world, as well as challenges in information sharing, intellectual property rights, supply chain logistics and manufacturing capacity. And we know that when the scientific community has the right resources, it can quickly develop drugs and vaccines.
What is needed now is to harness the political will, while it still exists, and the finances to strengthen preparedness and response to the next biological threat.
Vaccines, Therapies and Diagnostics
It’s natural to suggest that we should invest in the development of new therapies and vaccines — but this is a lot easier said than done. To develop new platforms for diagnostics, rapid sequencing of new biological threats, robust manufacturing capabilities and a process to distribute products broadly and equitably, we need to think more critically about how we can change or strengthen our policies to achieve these goals.
The global community would then need the capacity to produce sufficient quantities of drugs or vaccines to meet the needs of large populations and to ensure that there are systems in place to distribute products to all corners of the globe. Without thinking about how our policies can facilitate the development and distribution of these products, our goal of tackling future viral threats will be elusive.
Global Disease Response Norms and Standards
Strengthening our international standards for disease control starts with adhering to the international agreements we already have in place, such as the International Health Regulations, to make them more effective in addressing evolving global challenges. This enables us to better predict disease outbreaks, share information, travel and act, conduct relevant health research, manage intellectual property rights and support equality and human rights.
Preparedness and Response Funding
Sustained, predictable funding for both pandemic preparedness and response is essential to stay ahead of the next pandemic. Funding must be able to support national and sub-national resources and fund global efforts such as research and development.
workforce
People should be trained in multi-year programs, possibly through partnerships between academia and governments. Jobs and a competitive wage should then be available when students graduate. And then individuals need to be supported to ensure they can do their jobs well, while also taking care of themselves and their families.
What does strengthening pandemic preparedness mean now?
For governments, pandemic preparedness means a commitment to building and maintaining national, sub-national and community health capacity, from community health workers to diagnostic labs. For communities, this means ongoing public health messages to ensure people are educated about public health basics and understand why certain policy actions are taken.
National financiers and philanthropists must identify promising health-related research groups that deserve investment, while multilateral development banks such as the World Bank have an important responsibility to ensure that funds can reach research institutions and communities and be dispersed quickly if a new crisis arises.
As the world continues to battle Covid-19, we must build on the existing response and make it even stronger for the next threat. As we draw lessons from our response to the public health crisis we currently face, we look ahead with optimism. If the world is willing to devote enough time and attention, and governments commit to prioritizing global health security, we can strengthen public health capacities around the world, reward collaboration and collaboration, and ensure the world is prepared for the next pandemic.