François Picard is pleased to welcome Anne Moore, Professor of Biochemistry at University College Cork. She is warning about the seriousness of the latest Ebola outbreak linked to the rare Bundibugyo strain. While tests and vaccines exist for the Zaire strain, Professor Moore says “we don’t yet have proof that vaccines work against the current strain” and that tests have not yet been designed to detect Bundibugyo. Moore stressed that shrinking international funding is weakening the global response. “We’re plugging gaps instead of deploying the full countermeasures we could.” Moore broadens her analysis beyond virology, arguing for international solidarity and institutional resilience.
Moore defended the essential role of the WHO, warning that “viruses aren’t watching the news”, and argued that only a fast, coordinated international response can prevent another major health crisis.
She compared epidemic preparedness to maintaining a fire station: “You pay for the fire station, but you only need it every now and then. But when you need it, you really need to make sure that those fire trucks can go out and quench the fire”.
Global health systems cannot be improvised in moments of panic, she said. They must be funded, staffed, and trusted before catastrophe arrives.
