"Botched up Government Policies Causing Fresh Wave in Countries like UK and US:" Dr Faheem Younus
- 3 years ago
In a special conversation with Mitali Mukherjee, Dr Faheem Younus (VP, Chief Quality Officer and Chief of Infectious Diseases, University of Maryland, UCH) said that he wasn’t overly concerned about the pace of vaccine rollouts being much slower than anticipated. Dr Younus said precision was much more important than speed and the general public needed to remain aware that an alternative to vaccines still exist i.e., wearing masks, maintaining hand hygiene and avoiding large crowds and gatherings.
Dr Younus also pointed out that the recent surge in cases across areas like the UK, America and parts of China were the result of botched policies and mixed communication by their governments whereas nations like South Korea, that had been extremely careful also seemed to be struggling with a fresh spike in COVID cases.
On the subject of new mutations that are now coming to light, the Chief of Infectious Diseases, University of Maryland said that, medically speaking, he would rather have had to deal with a mutation that was 50% more deadly than 50% more transmittable, as that was a much bigger threat for health workers and nations.
Dr Younus commented on the recent concerns that were raised around Bharat Biotech’s Covaxin (that was cleared by the Indian regulator before proper Phase III data was shared)
and said that the onus was on the CEOs of these companies to be open, honest and transparent in their communication around testing and findings.
However, the big challenge, he believed, going into 2021 was of rising inequality being the biggest risk with vaccines. Nations like Argentina and Brazil are hosting some of the vaccine trials for companies like Pfizer but it is unlikely they will get the actual vaccines anytime soon.
Like our work? Click here to support The Wire: https://thewire.in/support
The founding premise of The Wire is this: if good journalism is to survive and thrive, it can only do so by being both editorially and financially independent. This means relying principally on contributions from readers and concerned citizens who have no interest other than to sustain a space for quality journalism. As a publication, The Wire will be firmly committed to the public interest and democratic values.
We publish in four different languages!
For English, visit www.thewire.in
for Hindi: http://thewirehindi.com/
for Urdu: http://thewireurdu.com
for Marathi: https://marathi.thewire.in
If you are a young writer or a creator, you can submit articles, essays, photos, poetry – anything that’s straight out of your imagination – to LiveWire, The Wire’s portal for the young, by the young. https://livewire.thewire.in/
You can also follow The Wire’s social media platforms and engage with us.
Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/TheWire/
https://www.facebook.com/TheWireHindi/
https://www.facebook.com/TheWireUrdu/
https://www.facebook.com/TheWireMarathi/
Twitter
https://twitter.com/thewire_in
https://twitter.com/thewirehindi
https://twitter.com/TheWireUrdu
https://twitter.com/TheWireMarathi
https://twitter.com/livewire
Instagram
https://www.instagram.com/thewirein/
https://www.instagram.com/livewirein/
Don’t forget to hit the subscribe button to never miss a video from The Wire!
Dr Younus also pointed out that the recent surge in cases across areas like the UK, America and parts of China were the result of botched policies and mixed communication by their governments whereas nations like South Korea, that had been extremely careful also seemed to be struggling with a fresh spike in COVID cases.
On the subject of new mutations that are now coming to light, the Chief of Infectious Diseases, University of Maryland said that, medically speaking, he would rather have had to deal with a mutation that was 50% more deadly than 50% more transmittable, as that was a much bigger threat for health workers and nations.
Dr Younus commented on the recent concerns that were raised around Bharat Biotech’s Covaxin (that was cleared by the Indian regulator before proper Phase III data was shared)
and said that the onus was on the CEOs of these companies to be open, honest and transparent in their communication around testing and findings.
However, the big challenge, he believed, going into 2021 was of rising inequality being the biggest risk with vaccines. Nations like Argentina and Brazil are hosting some of the vaccine trials for companies like Pfizer but it is unlikely they will get the actual vaccines anytime soon.
Like our work? Click here to support The Wire: https://thewire.in/support
The founding premise of The Wire is this: if good journalism is to survive and thrive, it can only do so by being both editorially and financially independent. This means relying principally on contributions from readers and concerned citizens who have no interest other than to sustain a space for quality journalism. As a publication, The Wire will be firmly committed to the public interest and democratic values.
We publish in four different languages!
For English, visit www.thewire.in
for Hindi: http://thewirehindi.com/
for Urdu: http://thewireurdu.com
for Marathi: https://marathi.thewire.in
If you are a young writer or a creator, you can submit articles, essays, photos, poetry – anything that’s straight out of your imagination – to LiveWire, The Wire’s portal for the young, by the young. https://livewire.thewire.in/
You can also follow The Wire’s social media platforms and engage with us.
https://www.facebook.com/TheWire/
https://www.facebook.com/TheWireHindi/
https://www.facebook.com/TheWireUrdu/
https://www.facebook.com/TheWireMarathi/
https://twitter.com/thewire_in
https://twitter.com/thewirehindi
https://twitter.com/TheWireUrdu
https://twitter.com/TheWireMarathi
https://twitter.com/livewire
https://www.instagram.com/thewirein/
https://www.instagram.com/livewirein/
Don’t forget to hit the subscribe button to never miss a video from The Wire!