Pandemic Response Research Articles

Machine Learning-based Analysis of Publications Funded by the National Institutes of Health's Initial COVID-19 Pandemic Response.

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) mobilized more than $4 billion in extramural funding for the COVID-19 pandemic. Assessing the research output from this effort is crucial to understanding how the scientific community leveraged federal funding and responded to this public health crisis. NIH-funded COVID-19 grants awarded between January 2020 and December 2021 were identified from NIH Research Portfolio Online Reporting Tools Expenditures and Results using the "COVID-19 Response" filter. PubMed identifications of publications under these grants were collected and the NIH iCite tool was used to determine citation counts and focus (eg, clinical, animal). iCite and the NIH's LitCOVID database were used to identify publications directly related to COVID-19. Publication titles and Medical Subject Heading terms were used as inputs to a machine learning-based model built to identify common topics/themes within the publications. We evaluated 2401 grants that resulted in 14 654 publications. The majority of these papers were published in peer-reviewed journals, though 483 were published to preprint servers. In total, 2764 (19%) papers were directly related to COVID-19 and generated 252 029 citations. These papers were mostly clinically focused (62%), followed by cell/molecular (32%), and animal focused (6%). Roughly 60% of preprint publications were cell/molecular-focused, compared with 26% of nonpreprint publications. The machine learning-based model identified the top 3 research topics to be clinical trials and outcomes research (8.5% of papers), coronavirus-related heart and lung damage (7.3%), and COVID-19 transmission/epidemiology (7.2%). This study provides key insights regarding how researchers leveraged federal funding to study the COVID-19 pandemic during its initial phase.

Disentangling the direct and indirect impacts of non-pharmaceutical interventions on production activities and carbon emissions

Non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) have been crucial in mitigating the COVID-19 pandemic, yet they've also heterogeneously disrupted production across sectors, highlighting socio-economic vulnerabilities. This study develops an ensemble model combining a Bayesian hierarchical model with supply chain dynamics to assess the direct and indirect impacts of three NPI themes—Gathering Restrictions, Mobility Restrictions, and Health Measures—on industrial output and carbon emissions in Beijing. The findings show that Health Measures enhanced local economic output by 1.12 %, yet also boosted regional carbon emissions by 6.15 %, primarily from the increased production in the Electric and Heat Power Production (EHP) sector, with a carbon intensity 1.96 times above the regional average. This emphasizes the urgent need for decarbonizing EHP to align health and environmental objectives in future pandemics. Furthermore, Mobility Restrictions had the most severe economic impact, 2.01 times greater than Gathering Restrictions, with Stationery Manufacturing being the most affected. Textile Manufacturing showed particular sensitivity to both Gathering Restrictions and Health Measures. These insights contribute to a more nuanced understanding of NPIs' impacts, supporting the development of balanced pandemic response strategies that consider economic, environmental, and health outcomes.

PRIEST: predicting viral mutations with immune escape capability of SARS-CoV-2 using temporal evolutionary information.

The dynamic evolution of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 virus is primarily driven by mutations in its genetic sequence, culminating in the emergence of variants with increased capability to evade host immune responses. Accurate prediction of such mutations is fundamental in mitigating pandemic spread and developing effective control measures. This study introduces a robust and interpretable deep-learning approach called PRIEST. This innovative model leverages time-series viral sequences to foresee potential viral mutations. Our comprehensive experimental evaluations underscore PRIEST's proficiency in accurately predicting immune-evading mutations. Our work represents a substantial step in utilizing deep-learning methodologies for anticipatory viral mutation analysis and pandemic response.

COPEWELL all-hazards resilience model predicts COVID-19 outcomes

The COVID-19 pandemic has presented an unprecedented challenge to public health and other community level systems throughout the United States since 2020. Investigating county-level factors (covariates in a statistical sense) closely related to COVID mortality is an important research objective, as it can provide insight for improving pandemic preparedness and response. Community resilience, which signifies the capability and capacity of communities to withstand and recover from adverse events, is a crucial component of pandemic preparedness. In this study, researchers employed Pearson's correlation coefficient and mediation analysis to explore the community resilience predicted by the Composite of Post-Event Well-Being (COPEWELL) model as a potential covariate that could be used to predict COVID-19 fatalities and further examine the generalizability and validity of the COPEWELL Model to the pandemic. Our findings indicate that the resilience predicted by the COPEWELL model is more strongly associated with COVID-19 health oucomes than county-level vaccination rates, although vaccination rate partially mediates the relationship between community resilience and COVID-19 fatalities per capita. This article underscores the effectiveness of implementing comprehensive all-hazards preparation strategies in the context of a pandemic and demonstrates that the COPEWELL model can serve as a valuable tool for identifying investments that can enhance community resilience.

Changes in social mixing and attitudes and practices to precautionary measures in a maturing COVID-19 pandemic in six communities in Sudan: a qualitative study

IntroductionWith low COVID-19 vaccination coverage, non-pharmaceutical interventions were critical to mitigating the COVID-19 pandemic in Sudan. We explored changes in social contact patterns, risk perception, attitudes, and practices toward protective measures during an evolving COVID-19 outbreak in six illustrative communities in Sudan.MethodsThis qualitative study took place in six communities in five Sudanese states using focus group discussions with community members and non-participant structured observations in public spaces between March 2021 and April 2021. A total of 117 participants joined 24 group discussions. We used a two-stage thematic analysis.ResultsThe perceived importance of compliance with individual preventative measures among those who believe in COVID-19 was higher than observed compliance with behaviors in most study sites. Adherence was consistently low and mainly driven by enforced movement restrictions. As restrictions were lifted, social contacts outside the household resumed pre-COVID-19 levels, and risk perception and individual and institutional adherence to protective measures diminished. We identified an environment that is socially and economically unsupportive of preventive practices, compounded by widespread rumours, misinformation, and mistrust in the government-led response. However, we identified new social habits that can contribute to reducing COVID-19 transmission.ConclusionThe unfavourable social and economic environment, coupled with the low visibility of the pandemic and pandemic response, has likely modulated the influence of higher risk perception on adopting precautionary behaviours by individuals. Governments and non-governmental actors should increase the visibility of the pandemic and pandemic response, enforce and incentivise infection control measures in public areas, promote emerging preventive social habits, and actively track and address rumours and misinformation related to COVID-19 and COVID-19 vaccines.

From Crisis to Control: Amidst and Postpandemic Data Protection Concerns in Singapore and Vietnam through the Lens of Techno-Solutionism and Efficient Violation of Privacy Rights

Abstract The success of Singapore with swift digital contact-tracing strategies inspired Vietnam to adopt similar measures, which both have raised concerns about balancing public health goals with personal data privacy. These approaches suggest a trend toward increased surveillance, citizen involvement in pandemic response, and enhanced government digitalization in everyday life postpandemic. This article examines the approaches of Singapore and Vietnam to data governance in the public sector during the COVID-19 pandemic, using the theories of techno-solutionism and the efficiency breach to assess how each country perceived and handled privacy rights during the crisis. The findings show that despite differing data governance approaches, both nations face similar challenges in balancing public interests and personal rights. This balance is particularly crucial in their pursuit of Pareto optimality in data protection laws against techno-solutionism, a key consideration in the development of smart cities or nations in the postpandemic era.

Leveraging local capital in humanitarian supply networks during pandemic response

During COVID-19, global supply chain disruption marred communities around the world. In active humanitarian crises, these logistical issues compounded underlying vulnerabilities in communities most in need, pushing humanitarian supply networks to adapt rapidly in order to continue providing aid and development activities. This paper therefore seeks to answer: “how can social capital be leveraged in disaster response during a crisis?“. By conceptualizing resilience through the lens of social capital theory, the paper abductively analyses 17 semi-structured interviews, into other to identify four examples of how social capital was leveraged by local humanitarian supply networks during COVID-19. By adopting a “peri-crisis lens” from trauma-informed research, the paper finds four resiliency behaviours of humanitarian supply networks: 1) localising supplier networks, 2) engaging local production, 3) pivoting to cash provision for local households, and 4) handing over to national staff. This paper argues that individuals, organisations, and communities are more resilient, not merely when they have social capital, but when they can rapidly leverage that social capital in a crisis. Through a close examination of the factors that enabled and hindered the leveraging of social capital during COVID-19, the paper offers practical policy suggestions for government and non-governmental organisations engaged in humanitarian supply networks, to rapidly respond in future pandemics. Additionally, the paper demonstrates the use of peri-crisis as a lens.

Leveraging seasonal influenza health worker vaccination programmes for COVID-19 vaccine Introduction: A global qualitative analysis

BackgroundHealth worker vaccination programmes can help to safeguard both health workers (HWs) and their patients and enhance vaccine uptake more broadly in local communities and society. This study’s objective was to increase global understanding of how existing HW vaccination programmes were leveraged for emergency COVID-19 vaccine introduction. MethodsThis qualitative study included 13 in-depth group interviews with 38 key informants with expertise in vaccine programme implementation from eleven countries in five WHO regions: Albania, Armenia, Bhutan, Lao PDR, Maldives, Mongolia, Oman, Timor Leste, the United Kingdom, Vietnam, and Zimbabwe in addition to WHO regional focal points from all six regions. These interviews were transcribed, coded, and thematically analyzed. Key informants reviewed the initial results and validated the key findings. ResultsInformants characterized key components of both routine and seasonal influenza vaccination programmes that were leveraged for the emergency vaccination of HWs during the COVID-19 pandemic. We identified a set of cross-cutting factors that were used for COVID-19 vaccine roll out: 1) pre-existing occupational health policies, 2) adequate human resources, 3) well-functioning data information systems and vaccine delivery platforms, and 4) established communication channels. Across the eleven countries and six regions interviewed, the ability to adapt existing influenza or other health worker vaccination infrastructure was beneficial for their pandemic response. ConclusionsOur findings suggest a strong justification for enhanced investment in vaccination of health workers, particularly against seasonal influenza, through country-wide programmes as a foundation for pandemic preparedness and response.

The ideational robustness of liberal democracy in the wake of the pandemic: comparing the Danish and Swedish cases

Abstract The Covid-19 pandemic sparked unprecedented political responses dramatically affecting societies, markets, and the lives of individuals. Under great uncertainty and turbulent conditions, governments adopted far-reaching political interventions to curb the pandemic. These interventions might therefore be expected to challenge key ideas underpinning liberal democracy. We analyze and compare how the political interventions seeking to curb the spread of the coronavirus in Denmark and Sweden challenged and possibly adapted three key ideas underpinning liberal democracy, namely, constitutionality, parliamentarism, and public responsiveness. When ideas are adapted in ways that advance their ability to stay relevant when faced with turbulence, we understand them as robust. Our study found both similarities and differences between the two countries. The idea of constitutionality was challenged in Denmark but remained robust in Sweden. The idea of parliamentarism appeared robust in both countries, whereas the idea of public responsiveness was adapted in neither country but challenged further in Sweden than in Denmark. Paradoxically, Denmark saw fewer adaptations to the liberal democratic ideas than Sweden yet appeared better prepared to protect lives during turbulent times. Our study suggests that liberal democracies must very carefully balance trade-offs between individual liberties and the protection of public health to preserve the core public ideas of constitutionality, parliamentarism, and public responsiveness.

Mobilizing data during a crisis: Building rapid evidence pipelines using multi-institutional real world data

The COVID-19 pandemic generated tremendous interest in using real world data (RWD). Many consortia across the public and private sectors formed in 2020 with the goal of rapidly producing high-quality evidence from RWD to guide medical decision-making, public health priorities, and more. Experiences were gathered from five large consortia on rapid multi-institutional evidence generation during the COVID-19 pandemic. Insights have been compiled across five dimensions: consortium composition, governance structure and alignment of priorities, data sharing, data analysis, and evidence dissemination. The purpose of this piece is to offer guidance on building large-scale multi-institutional RWD analysis pipelines for future public health issues.The composition of each consortium was largely influenced by existing collaborations. A central set of priorities for evidence generation guided each consortium, however different approaches to governance emerged. Challenges surrounding limited access to clinical data due to various contributors were overcome in unique ways. While all consortia used different methods to construct and analyze patient cohorts ranging from centralized to federated approaches, all proved effective for generating meaningful real-world evidence. Actionable recommendations for clinical practice and public health agencies were made from translating insights from consortium analyses.Each consortium was successful in rapidly answering questions about COVID-19 diagnosis and treatment despite all taking slightly different approaches to data sharing and analysis. Leveraging RWD, leveraged in a manner that applies scientific rigor and transparency, can complement higher-level evidence and serve as an important adjunct to clinical trials to quickly guide policy and critical care, especially for a pandemic response.

Voices From the Industry: How EdTech Leaders Responded to the COVID-19 Pandemic

Purpose Educational technology (“EdTech”) served a pivotal role in keeping schools functioning during the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Little is known about EdTech leaders’ roles in shaping this response. This study explores EdTech leaders’ perspectives and backgrounds, their response to the pandemic, how they envision their roles as educators, and their perspectives about how technology facilitates educational innovation. Design/Approach/Methods This study uses a qualitative, phenomenological approach to understand how 11 EdTech leaders experienced the pandemic. Participants were recruited for interviews in summer 2021 via purposive sampling to include diverse backgrounds and perspectives. Data were analyzed inductively. Findings The findings show that a four-category typology can be used to describe EdTech leaders’ diverse backgrounds and experiences. Leaders emphasized equity and open collaboration in their pandemic responses, by expanding access to their tools and adapting their products as users’ needs evolved. EdTech leaders anticipate streamlined user experiences, improvements in online learning, and increased adoption of artificial intelligence and simulated learning environments. Originality/Value This study addresses a gap in the research concerning EdTech leaders’ perspectives on their efforts to support educators and their experiences during the pandemic. We hope this study sparks additional research on EdTech leaders’ experiences and roles in education.

Epidemiology of Escherichia coli bloodstream infection antimicrobial resistance trends across South West England during the first 2 years of the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic response

ObjectivesBetween 2016 and 2019, the proportion of Escherichia coli bloodstream infection (BSI) with resistance to at least one antibiotic increased nationally. Public health interventions implemented in response to the COVID-19 pandemic changed population contact patterns and healthcare systems, with consequent effects on epidemiological trends of numerous pathogens. We investigated the impact of COVID-19 restrictions on epidemiological trends of E. coli BSI antimicrobial resistance (AMR) across South West England. MethodsWe undertook a retrospective ecological analysis utilizing routine surveillance data of E. coli BSI cases reported to the UK Health Security Agency between 2016 and 2021. We analysed AMR trends for antimicrobial agents including amoxicillin–clavulanate, ciprofloxacin, piperacillin–tazobactam, gentamicin, third-generation cephalosporins and carbapenems before and after the implementation of COVID-19 restrictions (23 March 2020) using Bayesian segmented regression. ResultsWe identified 19 055 cases. A total of 50.2% were male. Median age was 76 (interquartile range, 65–85 years). Piperacillin–tazobactam (–2.90% [95% highest density interval {HDI} –4.51%, –0.48%]) and ciprofloxacin (–2.40% [95% HDI –4.35%, 0.48%]) resistance demonstrated immediate step changes at the implementation of COVID-19 restrictions. Gentamicin (odds ratio [OR] 0.92 [95% HDI 0.76, 1.12]) and third-generation cephalosporins (OR 0.95 [95% HDI 0.80, 1.14]) exhibited decreasing annual resistance trends after the implementation of COVID-19 restrictions, with moderate evidence for a lower OR after restrictions as compared to the period before (gentamicin Bayes Factor = 5.10, third-generation cephalosporins Bayes Factor = 6.67). DiscussionCOVID-19 restrictions led to abrupt and longer term changes to E.coli BSI AMR. The immediate effects suggest altered transmission, whereas changes to resistant E. coli reservoirs may explain trend effects.

Experiences and Impacts of the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Thematic Analysis

The COVID-19 pandemic prompted global public health restrictions that impacted Canadians in multiple ways. The effects of the pandemic are well examined in specific populations and in researcher-defined areas (e.g., mental health, physical activity, social connections, and financial impacts). Few studies explore the complex perspectives of adults who experienced and were impacted by the pandemic. The purpose of this study was to understand Canadian adults’ perspectives of pandemic impacts over time. Methods: A sample of 347 Canadian adults were recruited during the first six months of the COVID-19 pandemic to respond to open-ended questions about the pandemic’s impacts, administered every two weeks between April 2020 and January 2021. The responses were amalgamated into epochs, defined by dates that paralleled infection rates and public health responses in Canada. Qualitative thematic analysis identified major themes for each epoch and changes in themes over time. Results: The participants predominately reported adverse impacts of the pandemic during each epoch assessed, particularly with respect to mental health, future-oriented worry, activity restrictions, and social, and employment disruptions. Key concerns were potentially driven by changes in infection rates and public health policy changes. Conclusions: The COVID-19 pandemic impacted individuals in predominantly negative and complex ways that varied over time with public health responses. Findings from the present study may direct future pandemic responses to mitigate adverse effects to best prevent infection while preserving wellbeing.

Application of Omics and Bioinformatics Technologies in Response to COVID-19 Pandemic

The medical biotechnology community has undertaken significant endeavors to gain a comprehensive understanding of SARS-CoV-2’s biology and pathogenesis mechanisms. Omics approaches and technologies have been widely employed in the fight against SARS-CoV-2. Since the onset of the virus outbreak, researchers have demonstrated how recent omics and bioinformatics technological advancements have contributed to the diagnosis, vaccine development, treatment, and control of disease transmission. Studies conducted since the outbreak have been collected and summarized, with a focus on bioinformatics approaches and their contribution to controlling this pandemic. Developments and advanced omics technology in connection to the COVID-19 pandemic have been analyzed. The multi-omics technology, which offers various strategies in identifying potential diagnostics, therapeutics, studies of variants of concern, and drug repurposing approaches, has been assessed. Pandemic response has seen the application of multi-omics and pan-genomics approaches, including genomics, metabolomics, transcriptomics, proteomics, epigenomics, clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR) technology, host-pathogen interactions, artificial intelligence, and machine learning in various research areas. Additionally, bioinformatics and mathematical modeling have played a significant role in disease control. The use of smart technologies to control virus transmission and predict patients’ health conditions and treatment outcomes has also been crucial. Transcriptome analysis has emerged as a major application, contributing to the generation of new knowledge on viral sequences and intracellular signaling pathways that regulate viral infection and pathogenesis mechanisms. The sequencing of the virus has paved the way for the use of omics technologies and an integrative technique in combating the pandemic. In general, the advancement of omics technology during this pandemic has been fascinating and has contributed a significant role to the science of health biotechnology in general and omics and bioinformatics in particular.Keywords: bioinformatics, coronavirus, COVID-19, omics, SARS COV-2

Vaccine patriotism and public health cultures: Cuba’s scalable best practices in the Covid-19 pandemic

ABSTRACT Media fatigue and public amnesia notwithstanding, Covid-19 continues to negatively impact humanity and the global economy. Uneven vaccination coverage fosters contagion and variants. High-income countries have suboptimal immunization rates due to the politicization of health care, fake news and eugenics-tinged histories that exacerbate hesitancy. Most low-income countries remain under-vaccinated due to the cost of jabs. Classic tech, affordable, straightforward to manufacture and administer subunit protein vaccinations grant heterogeneous, accessible, time-tested and highly effective protection; their broader use could improve this situation. Yet, the transnational pharmaceutical industry is making even more profit on each messenger RNA (mRNA) shot now that the pandemic is termed endemic. Cuba’s protein subunit vaccines are over 92% effective and offer the world more choice in Covid-19 protection. This article draws on existing academic research, news reports and first-hand field investigations in Havana over three years. It argues that Cuba’s coordinated, nonprofit, public health-based pandemic response that incorporates high-uptake vaccination using high-effectiveness vaccines provides an under-acknowledged case study of a system that has delivered populations exceptionally positive health outcomes when confronting Covid-19.

Do working parents in the United States expect work location to impact job and family satisfaction in the post-pandemic period? Evidence from a survey experiment.

The pandemic response allowed many parents in the United States and globally to work remotely for the first time ever which, for many, continued into the recovery. It is unclear whether, after a period when a large segment of the United States labor force worked remotely, remote work is viewed favorably or unfavorably among employed parents. We present results from a survey experiment assessing whether employed parents in the United States perceive that remote work will impact a hypothetical employed parents' job and family satisfaction and, critically, whether perceptions of work-family conflict and anticipated job rewards mediate this relationship. We find that respondents who are also employed parents perceive that hypothetical employed parents who access remote work will report lower job satisfaction and higher family satisfaction. Perceptions of work-family conflict do not mediate this association. Rather, we find that job rewards (e.g., pay, promotion, etc.) fully mediate the relationship between remote work and perceived job satisfaction. Ultimately, this indicates that employed parents perceive that remote work will bring workers like them less pay and thus lower job satisfaction but greater family satisfaction. This extends arguments about remote work in the light of the conceptualization of a flexibility stigma and a flexibility paradox. Implications for practice and theory are discussed.

Toward decolonized fiscal relationships between universities and community organizations: lessons learned from the California community engagement alliance against COVID-19

ABSTRACT In September 2020, the US National Institutes of Health (NIH) allocated $12 million to support engagement with historically marginalized communities hardest hit by COVID-19. The award was designed to mobilize community-engagement in pandemic response, and to support partnerships as part of the NIH Community Engagement Alliance (CEAL) Against COVID-19 Disparities. All aspects of the award were fast-tracked, and NIH utilized a ‘more flexible’ funding mechanism (OTA) to facilitate swift distribution of funds. In this paper, we draw upon an analysis of findings from a 2021 survey conducted with 11 California CEAL sites representing urban and rural settings, private and public universities, and established and new community partners and qualitative analysis of 2020–2022 site-wide meeting minutes. We describe the challenges posed at the federal (e.g. NIH funding), university, and community–university partnership levels as well as opportunities and creative workarounds. Challenges include delays in subcontracts and payments to community partners that undermined trust and reproduced unequal and hierarchical power relationships. We build upon our findings and collective experience to propose a framework for decolonized fiscal relationships between universities and community partners which contains key recommendations for funders, universities, and community partners.

Lower respiratory tract infection admissions and deaths among children under 5 years in public sector facilities in the Western Cape Province, South Africa, before and during the COVID-19 pandemic (2019 - 2021)

Background. The COVID‐19 pandemic resulted in the implementation of strict public health and social measures (PHSMs) (including mobility restrictions, social distancing, mask‐wearing and hand hygiene), limitations on non‐essential healthcare services, and public fear of COVID‐19 infection, all of which potentially affected transmission and healthcare use for other diseases such as lower respiratory tract infections (LRTIs). Objective. To determine changes in LRTI hospital admissions and in‐facility mortality in children aged <5 years in the Western Cape Province during the pandemic. Methods. We conducted a retrospective analysis of LRTI admissions and in‐facility deaths from January 2019 to November 2021. We estimated changes in rates and trends of LRTI admissions during the pandemic compared with pre‐pandemic period using interrupted time series analysis, adjusting for key characteristics. Results. There were 36 277 children admitted for LRTIs during the study period, of whom 58% were male and 51% were aged 28 days ‐ 1 year. COVID‐19 restrictions were associated with a 13% step reduction in LRTI admissions compared with the pre‐COVID‐19 period (incidence rate ratio (IRR) 0.87, 95% confidence interval (CI)) 0.80 ‐ 0.94). The average LRTI admission trend increased on average by 2% per month during the pandemic (IRR 1.02, 95% CI 1.02 ‐ 1.04). Conclusions. The COVID‐19 surges and their associated measures were linked to declining LRTI admissions and in‐facility deaths, likely driven by a combination of reduced infectious disease transmission and reduced use of healthcare services, with effects diminishing over time. These findings may inform future pandemic response policies.

Development of a University-Government Partnership for Public Health Response and Workforce Development in the State of Oregon.

The COVID-19 pandemic exposed and exacerbated a public health workforce shortage and national strategies have called for the development of clear occupational pathways for students to enter the public health workforce and meaningful public health careers. In response to the immediate need for public health workers during the pandemic, several universities and academic hospitals rapidly mobilized students and employees and partnered with local or state health departments. However, many of those partnerships were based on short-term volunteer effort to support critical COVID-19 public health efforts. In this article, we document the development of Oregon's Public Health Practice Team, a student, staff, and faculty workforce developed at the Oregon Health & Science University-Portland State University (OHSU-PSU) School of Public Health in close collaboration with the Oregon Health Authority (OHA). This project contributed significant effort to several phases of Oregon's statewide public health response to COVID-19, and over time developed into a lasting, multi-purpose, inter-agency collaborative public health practice program. Health equity has been centered at every stage of this work. We describe the phases of the partnership development, the current team structure and operations, and highlight key challenges and lessons learned. This provides a case-study of how an innovative and flexible university-government partnership can contribute to immediate pandemic response needs, and also support ongoing public health responses to emerging needs, while contributing to the development of a skilled and diverse public health workforce.

Fighting for IP Equity: A Zoom on the Forthcoming Who Pandemic Agreement

Faced with the impact of COVID-19, WHO Member States agreed to draft and negotiate an agreement on pandemic prevention, preparedness and response. A proposal for negotiating text of this WHO Pandemic Agreement was prepared by the Intergovernmental Negotiating Body’s Bureau and shared with its Drafting Group in October 2023 for its consideration. This process should lead to the adoption of a legally binding accord. This article considers the usefulness of this international instrument for pandemic prevention, preparedness and response in relation to intellectual property (IP) to ultimately recognise such usefulness but to argue that the negotiating text could be more ambitious. It focuses on the Agreement potential to mitigate the impact of IP regulations that favour developed countries and their pharmaceutical industries. The article first highlights how the international IP system, through the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights, disempowered developing countries in their battle against COVID-19. It then focuses on provisions relating to IP law found in the negotiating text to explore and question its potential to contribute to IP equity for developing countries for future pandemics. Finally, the article proposes recommendations to strengthen the impact of a WHO Pandemic Agreement in the fight for IP equity.