Researchers from the Pandemic Sciences Institute and PSI affiliates from Leverhulme Centre for Demographic Science, Ethox Centre, Department of Statistics and Department of Biology will co-lead a new programme of work to protect against future pandemics using digital tools.
The Oxford Martin Programme on Digital Pandemic Preparedness will develop a blueprint for digital health systems that can be deployed during pandemics, create a funding model for implementation, and work with public health agencies to develop the next generation of pandemic-ready digital tools. Such tools are already enabling unprecedented and individualised public policy responses, as demonstrated during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Professor Melinda Mills, programme co-director, and director of the Leverhulme Centre for Demographic Science, said “We face an unprecedented number of outbreaks, epidemics and pandemics, while at the same time digital tools are transforming our lives and enabling novel analytics and personalised public policy responses.
Programme co-director Christophe Fraser, Moh Family Foundation Professor of Infectious Disease Epidemiology at the Pandemic Sciences Institute, added “We are entering an age when pandemics are more likely because of environmental change, ecological change, climate change and increasing urbanisation.
Professor Sir Charles Godfray, Director of the Oxford Martin School, said “I am really excited about the three new programmes which I believe will help address a broad range of challenges facing us in the coming decades. I am confident the researchers working on these programmes will continue our rich tradition of addressing these challenges in novel and innovative ways.”
Read the full story on the Pandemic Sciences Institute website.