Pandemics Preparedness

Anthony S. Fauci on Pandemic Preparedness

Before he led the effort to contain COVID-19, the nation’s top infectious disease expert published several papers about pandemic preparedness. Here are two.

Dr. Anthony Fauci speaks to reporters following a meeting of the coronavirus task force at the White House on April 6, 2020

 

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During the current COVID-19 pandemic, Anthony S. Fauci has emerged as the voice of science. Since 1984, he’s served as the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), where he “oversees an extensive research portfolio of basic and applied research to prevent, diagnose, and treat established infectious diseases such as HIV/AIDS, respiratory infections, diarrheal diseases, tuberculosis and malaria as well as emerging diseases such as Ebola and Zika.” He has published extensively on these subjects. Two papers from The Journal of Infectious Diseases on pandemic preparedness are of particular interest. They are freely available for reading and download via the links below.

“The 1918 Influenza Pandemic: Insights for the 21st Century”

Authors: Morens, David M., and Anthony S. Fauci.
The Journal of Infectious Diseases 195, no. 7 (2007): 1018-028.

In this consideration of the 1918-1919 H1N1 influenza pandemic, Fauci and his co-author call for “the need for continued pandemic vigilance, basic and applied research, and pandemic preparedness planning that emphasizes prevention, containment, and treatment with antiviral medications and hospital-based intensive care.”

“Seasonal and Pandemic Influenza Preparedness: Science and Countermeasures”

Author: Anthony S. Fauci
The Journal of Infectious Diseases 194 (2006): S73-76.

“Influenza has not been treated with the degree of medical attention that the disease warrants. As such, there is not an adequate baseline of preparedness in the United States to deal with the potential of pandemic influenza. … There is an integral relationship between preparation for seasonal influenza and preparation for pandemic influenza. Until these approaches are firmly linked, the community will not have optimized its preparedness for a pandemic.”