Authorities have been warned about five virus families that could cause future pandemics. Here are snapshots of the diseases each can cause and why we should be worried.
Billions of face masks and other personal protective equipment have been used throughout the pandemic. Containing plastic, these items are damaging wildlife and their environments.
New boosters protect against the original COVID strain as well as Omicron. In future, we might see variant-proof vaccines or those delivered in the nose or mouth.
With the goal of ‘business as usual’, politicians will continue to reduce COVID protections without immediate consequence while transmission is low. But then the next wave will come.
Family routines can provide stability during times of stress. Here are four strategies for building resilience against stress and family challenges to put into place as children head back to school.
Early on, public health messaging focused on the need for vaccines to combat COVID-19. But far less attention has been given to the role of boosters in preventing deaths and reducing inequities.
Honorary Enterprise Professor, School of Population and Global Health, and Department of General Practice and Primary Care, The University of Melbourne
Dean Faculty of Health Sciences and Professor of Vaccinology at University of the Witwatersrand; and Director of the SAMRC Vaccines and Infectious Diseases Analytics Research Unit, University of the Witwatersrand