Did We Listen? "Basically No" - Bill Gates

With relative certainty, it’s fair to assume you’ve either rewatched or heard about the 8 minute Ted Talk Bill Gates delivered some 5 years ago, pragmatically expressing his concerns over the increased likelihood of an imminent global pandemic. In his speech, Gates sternly outlined the harsh consequences we may face should we choose to disregard his warnings of the truly catastrophic ramifications a global pandemic could inflict on the world as we know it. 

A link to Bill’s initial Ted Talk is here.

Now, 5 years on, we’re witnessing hospitals being forced to turn away potentially fatal patients due to a drastic lack of medical infrastructure. Not to mention the worst economic collapse in history with millions unemployed worldwide and a predicted 40 million Americans alone to lose their jobs before Covid-19 is successfully defeated.

Just recently Bill Gates returned to the Ted Talks platform to discuss the various responses we ought to consider in regards to the pandemic of Covid-19.

The two most salient points Gate’s made in this interview was: 

1. Effective testing is the first step to beating this pandemic. Prioritising testing for health workers and refining the testing processes so that patients can test themselves alone is crucial responses that need to be implemented to combat this pandemic.   
2. Isolation will ensure a drop in the exponential growth of people with Covid-19 infecting others, drastically slowing the spread of the virus. 

My underpinning takeaway from Bill’s Talks is that there still exists a lack of clear information on how to prevent and suppress the spread of a viral pandemic. There are many questions we still need to answer in regards to safeguarding our societies from outbreaks like these in the future. However, it is refreshing to see government authorities in Australia awake at the wheel, taking proactive action to suppress the pandemic. It is clear, for now however, testing as much as possible will provide the data needed to appropriately respond to the crisis of Covid-19 as it unfolds around the world today. 

A link to Bill’s second Ted Talk in response to Covid-19 is here.