January 21, 2021

why vaccination of the most vulnerable does not guarantee an early end to the pandemic

One of the questions we are all interested in now is WHEN the current programme of vaccinating those most at risk will allow us to bring the epidemic to an end and allow us to escape restrictions.

While we are desperate for good news, some scientists are warning that it’s not that simple, and that easing restrictions before enough people have been vaccinated could lead to a third wave.

Modelling groups at Imperial, Warwick and Edinburgh have been working on this and the SMC invited them to explain how their data helps answer these questions.

Speakers included:

Dr Marc Baguelin, Lecturer in Infectious Disease Modelling, Imperial College London, and Associate Professor at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine

Dr Anne Cori, Lecturer in Infectious Disease Modelling, Imperial College London

Professor Matt Keeling, Professor of Populations and Disease, University of Warwick

Professor Mark Woolhouse, Professor of Infectious Disease Epidemiology, University of Edinburgh