The Abbott Pandemic Defense Coalition was created to stop disease outbreaks before they stop us.
Viruses never sleep. They move fast and change fast, “which is why we must move faster,” said Abbott.
Indeed, ongoing collaboration across the public and private sectors is critical to identify and rapidly respond to global disease outbreaks. No organization, network or country is enough to effectively fight against viral pathogens.
The Abbott Pandemic Defense Coalition was created to “stop disease outbreaks before they stop us,” according to the company. The Coalition is a network of over 20 scientific and public health organizations across five different continents focused on identifying, tracking, and responding to known and emerging disease threats to help prevent the next pandemic, while helping to end existing endemics.
“Think of the coalition like a sophisticated weather tracking system: Infectious experts with eyes on the ground using tests and technology to know how disease threats are changing – or even if new ones pop up – to stay one step ahead. We can sound the alarm and proactively address potential threats too – just like we would for a hurricane, so the necessary resources are available before an event occurs.”
Abbott said innovation happened very quickly during the COVID-19 pandemic across the U.S. healthcare system. The company is taking those learnings to apply them to address a potential next pandemic. “Our account managers work closely with customers and distribution representatives to provide testing solutions that can flex to meet their needs based on what viruses are circulating, aligning to industry diagnostic stewardship initiatives (right test, right patient, right time).” Faster test results for infectious diseases improves operational efficiency, reduces risk, and most importantly improves speed time to treatment for patients.
Customers continue to be alert to viruses and their potential to turn into an outbreak. “The recent human cases of H5N1 prompted discussions with both our customers and distribution representatives. Through our work by the Abbott Pandemic Defense Coalition, as well as ongoing cross reactivity testing by our R&D teams, we were able to provide timely guidance.
“In this instance, we could share that today we continue to primarily see the H5N1 virus circulate among animals and that the good news is not only are we monitoring this, but countermeasures do exist. One countermeasure is influenza tests that detect H5N1, which quickly tell a person if they have the flu so treatment can be given.”