In the first of our new podcast series, Benjamin Thompson, Noah Baker, and Amy Maxmen discuss the epidemiology needed to control the Covid-19 outbreak.

In this episode:

03:57 Testing times

Case numbers of Covid-19 have leapt around the world in recent days, but how many undetected cases are out there? We talk about the urgent need to deploy two of the cornerstones of effective epidemiology – testing and contact tracing – and discuss why these measures aren’t being rolled out worldwide.

News article: Scientists exposed to coronavirus wonder: why weren’t we notified?; News article: South Korea is reporting intimate details of COVID-19 cases: has it helped?; News explainer: What China’s coronavirus response can teach the rest of the world

14:23 Global governance in the wake of Covid-19

The International Health Regulations (IHR) were set up to help countries prepare for, and respond to, public-health emergencies. Rebecca Katz, a health security researcher specialising in emerging infectious diseases, tells us how the IHR are holding up during the Covid-19 outbreak.

Worldview: Pandemic policy can learn from arms control

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Coronapod: “Test, test, test!”

Nature Podcast