Strategy To Prevent Future Pandemics
The health of all life on the planet is connected. The Covid 19 outbreak starkly reminds us of a basic fact that cannot be ignored.A multidisciplinary approach integrating and funding experts in animal, ecosystem and human health is urgently needed. Ignorance concerning coronavirus abounds.
Benjamin Franklin advised in 1736 that " An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure". Viruses that inhabit wild animals can infect domesticated animals, and similarly live stock diseases can decimate the last wildlife population. Large proportions of the world still fail to implement global sanitary standards in livestock production and trade in animals and their products. Large scale urban consumption of wildlife knows no standards and can never be considered sanitary and safe. Humans everywhere are at risk. Waiting to act until a disease infects a human is too late.
In a mere four months, the world has been brought down to its knees by a previously unknown virus. But Covid 19 won't be the last, or perhaps even the deadliest pandemic. An estimated six to eight lacs unknown viral species capable of infecting humans lurk in wildlife. Besides, urbanization, population growth, climate change, relentless destruction of wildlife habitats and harvesting of wild species have brought viruses in closer contacts with humans.than ever before. Pandemics may become the new normal.
But, Pandemics are preventable, and the world can do three things to prevent them.
First, a global early warning system can be created, much like tsunamis and earthquakes, system could allow for early detection of and rapid response to an outbreak before it spreads. It could gather intelligence through a combination of Artificial intelligence surveillance, our break investigation and zoonotic reconnaissance. Pandemic usually begin when a virus or other pathogen jump from animals to people in what is called a Zoonotic spillover. Covid 19 pandemics all jumped from bats to humans through an intermediary animal host - civets in SARS, Camels in MERS and a still unknown intermediary in Covid 19. Routine reconnaissance for spillover between animals and people in close contact could provide early warning of an impending outbreak. Artificial intelligence can help with early warning as was sent for SARS and MERS.
Second, future pandemics can be prevented by strengthening public health.Early warning systems would be useless if local, national and global public health systems cannot pressurize effective response to an outbreak. Countries like Singapore, Taiwan and South Korea have strong public health systems that took early actions, set up a unified command, executed a coordinated science based strategy, deployed sufficient human resources, ramped up testing and contact tracing, and provided transparent, trustworthy information to the public. In USA, chronic under funding left most state and local public health departments without a sufficient workforce to conduct mass contact tracing. Federal Govt. was unprepared, misguided and disorganized in its response, leaving the states to fend for themselves. Covid 19 exposes the vulnerabilities of public health systems throughout the U.S and worldwide, which need to be fixed before the next pandemic.
Third, we can prevent future pandemics at their source by by minimizing the risk of spillovers. Protecting natural habitats from relentless human encroachment and creating buffer zones around protected areas are important long term goals. Most immediately, we can stop wildlife trade, not only by regulating, monitoring or shutting down live animal markets like the one in Wuhan, but by enforcing international law to combat illegal wildlife trade. The USA and China are responsible for 60% of global imports and exports of all wildlife, respectively, it's time for two nations to step up.
Preventing future pandemics will require an unprecedented level of global cooperation. The question remains whether we can get our act together before the next pandemic strikes. In short, we need to emphasize on three steps, as -
1) Stop Wildlife Trade.
2) Stop Wildlife Consumption.
3) Stop Destroying Nature and Ecosystems.
---------------------------
Benjamin Franklin advised in 1736 that " An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure". Viruses that inhabit wild animals can infect domesticated animals, and similarly live stock diseases can decimate the last wildlife population. Large proportions of the world still fail to implement global sanitary standards in livestock production and trade in animals and their products. Large scale urban consumption of wildlife knows no standards and can never be considered sanitary and safe. Humans everywhere are at risk. Waiting to act until a disease infects a human is too late.
In a mere four months, the world has been brought down to its knees by a previously unknown virus. But Covid 19 won't be the last, or perhaps even the deadliest pandemic. An estimated six to eight lacs unknown viral species capable of infecting humans lurk in wildlife. Besides, urbanization, population growth, climate change, relentless destruction of wildlife habitats and harvesting of wild species have brought viruses in closer contacts with humans.than ever before. Pandemics may become the new normal.
But, Pandemics are preventable, and the world can do three things to prevent them.
First, a global early warning system can be created, much like tsunamis and earthquakes, system could allow for early detection of and rapid response to an outbreak before it spreads. It could gather intelligence through a combination of Artificial intelligence surveillance, our break investigation and zoonotic reconnaissance. Pandemic usually begin when a virus or other pathogen jump from animals to people in what is called a Zoonotic spillover. Covid 19 pandemics all jumped from bats to humans through an intermediary animal host - civets in SARS, Camels in MERS and a still unknown intermediary in Covid 19. Routine reconnaissance for spillover between animals and people in close contact could provide early warning of an impending outbreak. Artificial intelligence can help with early warning as was sent for SARS and MERS.
Second, future pandemics can be prevented by strengthening public health.Early warning systems would be useless if local, national and global public health systems cannot pressurize effective response to an outbreak. Countries like Singapore, Taiwan and South Korea have strong public health systems that took early actions, set up a unified command, executed a coordinated science based strategy, deployed sufficient human resources, ramped up testing and contact tracing, and provided transparent, trustworthy information to the public. In USA, chronic under funding left most state and local public health departments without a sufficient workforce to conduct mass contact tracing. Federal Govt. was unprepared, misguided and disorganized in its response, leaving the states to fend for themselves. Covid 19 exposes the vulnerabilities of public health systems throughout the U.S and worldwide, which need to be fixed before the next pandemic.
Third, we can prevent future pandemics at their source by by minimizing the risk of spillovers. Protecting natural habitats from relentless human encroachment and creating buffer zones around protected areas are important long term goals. Most immediately, we can stop wildlife trade, not only by regulating, monitoring or shutting down live animal markets like the one in Wuhan, but by enforcing international law to combat illegal wildlife trade. The USA and China are responsible for 60% of global imports and exports of all wildlife, respectively, it's time for two nations to step up.
Preventing future pandemics will require an unprecedented level of global cooperation. The question remains whether we can get our act together before the next pandemic strikes. In short, we need to emphasize on three steps, as -
1) Stop Wildlife Trade.
2) Stop Wildlife Consumption.
3) Stop Destroying Nature and Ecosystems.
---------------------------
Comments