Professor Jim Al-Khalili
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Kiitos kun katsoit.
Hello from building a makeshift chemistry lab in his wardrobe as a child and years later setting his own shattered leg after a climbing accident to more recently raising billions of dollars to help vaccinate the world during the covid pandemic. Dr. Seth Barkley has never been one to do things by halves. Seth's career as an epidemiologist has revolved around one big problem. The vaccines save lives, but only if people can get them.
His four decades in the field have taken him around the world, from helping to build Uganda's first HIV surveillance system and founding the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative, to leading Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, for more than a decade, overseeing the immunization of hundreds of millions of children worldwide.
And when COVID-19 struck, Seth founded COVAX, the global initiative designed to stop wealthy nations monopolizing vaccines. So it's no surprise that he doesn't pull his punches when it comes to calling out misinformation and believes public health messaging has to get back to the science. He says we need to care about this. People must understand that vaccinating the world is self-interest as much as humanitarian.
It's a strong message. Whether it's getting through to the right people remains to be seen. But we'll get to that. For now, Dr. Seth Barkley, welcome to The Life Scientific. Thanks for having me. Now, Seth, I think we have to start by acknowledging that this is a particularly strange time in vaccine science. There's a huge amount of anti-vax propaganda and disinformation floating about. How have we got to this point?
Well, certainly those early home experiments stood you in good stead. You ended up going to study medicine at Brown University and in the summer of 1978, as a young medical student, you went to get some hands-on experience at a clinic in Mississippi, which ended up being a formative time for you.
After qualifying in 1981, Seth, you did your residency in Boston at Harvard University's teaching hospital, Beth Israel. Then you took a job as a medical epidemiologist at the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Kuunnellaan myyntiÀ. LÀhdetÀÀn heti uudelleen. Monet kuulijoita tietÀvÀt, ettÀ tÀmÀn vuoden alussa Yhdysvallan terveydenhuolto jÀrjestÀi Yhdysvaltojen myyntiÀ, jopa muutaman eurooppalaisen maan jÀlkeen.
There's a similar situation unfolding in the US. As we're recording, it still technically has this elimination status, but the latest statistics suggest it will lose that in November when the next official assessment takes place. What's gone wrong here? And in your view, is there a simple way to fix it?
Well Seth, back to your story. In 1987 you were offered a job with the Carter Center in Uganda. That's the non-profit health organization set up by former US president Jimmy Carter. And of course the fact that it became the early epicenter of the HIV AIDS epidemic in Africa meant that that then became your focus, didn't it?
Well, after two years in Uganda, you moved back to the US to join the philanthropic Rockefeller Foundation, managing global programs in epidemiology, vaccination and AIDS. But a couple of years in this job led you to a stark realization that the global HIV vaccine effort had stalled.
TÀmÀ on yhdessÀ yhdessÀ yhdessÀ yhdessÀ yhdessÀ yhdessÀ.
No, Seth, takaisin teidÀn alkuperÀisilleen IAVIin kanssa. Olet edelleen aina toimittanut ekspeditiivien doktorin kanssa monissa maailmanlaajuisissa reissuissa, jotta pysyisit klinikkoja. 2001 Namibian reissuissa sinulla oli huono ongelma.
triathlete, ja minun piti muuttaa ja muuttaa sporttini. KyllÀ, koska tÀmÀ oli enemmÀn kuin yllÀttynÀ. Olet kÀynyt viisi toimintaa, olet kestÀnyt kuusi kuukautta uudelleen ja uudelleen. Kun sanot, ettÀ olet marathoni, triathlete, onko se kaikki loppunut?
Various sporting stress outlets, even if it wasn't running marathons. Because life was about to get extremely busy for you. In 2011 you joined Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, as CEO. So for anyone who isn't familiar with this organisation, maybe you can briefly set out what it does.
No marketplace it wouldn't happen. And that became a really important tool that we later on used for COVID and other diseases. As you say, it really did turn out to be important groundwork, because in late 2019 there were rumblings of a new super virus coming out of China, which is when you, Gavi and various other collaborators swung into action to launch COVAX, an initiative to ensure equitable access to COVID vaccines. How did that come about?
Well, as we've already discussed, Seth, it's a very different world today compared to when you started your career. We've spoken before on this program about how misinformation and distrust are undermining global vaccine efforts. In fact, a major study, partly funded by Gavi and published in The Lancet last year, found that routine vaccination coverage globally had actually stalled and even reversed. How would you like to see that tackled?
Kuuntelijat ovat kuitenkin kuitenkin kuitenkin kuitenkin kuitenkin
As you mentioned, you recently wrote a book, Seth, Fair Doses, an Insider Story of the Pandemic and the Global Fight for Vaccine Equity. I hope this doesn't count as a spoiler, but at the end of the book you say, if we start now, we'll be much better prepared for the next pandemic, because it's an evolutionary certainty that there will be one. So what would your advice be then, to be as prepared as possible for whatever health challenges around the corner?
And thank you for listening. I'm Jamal Khalili and my producer is Lucy Taylor. If you enjoyed listening to this edition of The Life Scientific, why not check out some of our other interviews with leading scientists, exploring everything from space travel to medical breakthroughs. You can access the whole archive of programs for free via BBC Sounds. BBC Sounds. Music, radio, podcasts.