This is what we need to do about Covid this winter

My current focus is on how we transition from the pandemic to the endemic stage of the disease, writes John McGinley

Global attitudes towards Covid-19 and how best to protect vulnerable people are constantly evolving (Reuters)

Earlier this month, on 8 December, we marked the two-year anniversary of the start of the Covid-19 vaccine rollout and were reminded of how far we have come. Globally, there have been over 642 million cases of Covid and – tragically – more than six million deaths since the outbreak began. We are now seeing a surge of cases in China.

Nearly 13 billion vaccine doses have been administered, with a study in The Lancet suggesting that these prevented close to 20 million deaths in the first year alone. However, global attitudes towards the virus and how best to protect vulnerable people are constantly evolving.

In the UK, we are experiencing our first winter since 2019 without Covid restrictions in place. Whilst Covid cases did decrease in November, we must not get complacent. We are in the middle of flu season, and natural immunity is thought to be lower due to coronavirus restrictions in previous years.

Beyond Covid and flu, cases of other infectious respiratory diseases such as respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and pneumococcal pneumonia are also typically higher in winter months.

A challenging time for health services every year, this winter the NHS waiting list is at an all-time high, with almost 7.21 million people waiting for treatment. Urgent action is needed to ease the pressure on health services. The health secretary Steve Barclay has acknowledged that “there is a huge amount to do to steer health and care through this storm”.

Supporting the NHS workforce and improving access to primary care are two of Barclay’s key priorities for the months ahead. To maintain this momentum and ease pressure on the NHS we must work together – it continues to be critical that we use all the tools at our disposal to support NHS recovery and protect vulnerable populations.

Since the pandemic began, we have recognised that a dual approach to prevention and treatment is needed to protect against Covid. While vaccination and preventative measures such as good basic hygiene remain the first line of defence against the virus, treatments represent an important therapeutic option.

In 2021 and 2022 I was leading the hospital business unit at Pfizer in Germany. I was focused on organising the supply of medicines throughout the pandemic and equipping hospitals and the government to support vulnerable people. We faced similar challenges to the UK – and there are good learnings to be shared with our neighbours for future pandemic preparedness. After all, the virus does not understand boundaries.

To ease pressure on an overstretched NHS and support recovery, we must continue to encourage vaccine uptake and use the tools at our disposal to get treatments into the hands of those who need them most. My current focus is on how we transition from the pandemic to the endemic stage of the disease, implement our learnings from working and living with Covid, and prepare for future pandemics.

I am confident in the knowledge we have learned and the tools we have developed over the past two years, to ensure our lives will not be as controlled by Covid as they once were. However, we must always remain vigilant, stay one step ahead and take action to protect those who still need our help.

John McGinley is mRNA/Antiviral Business Unit Lead at Pfizer UK