COVID-19 in Africa: rethinking the tools to manage future pandemics

Corona virus disease 2019 (COVID-19) remains an incurable, progressive pneumonia-like illness characterized by fever, dry cough, fatigue, and headache during its early stages. COVID-19 has ultimately resulted in mortality in at least 2 million people worldwide. Millions of people globally have already been affected by this disease, and the numbers are expected to increase, perhaps until an effective cure or vaccine is identified.Although Africa was initially purported by the World Health Organization (WHO) to be severely hit by the pandemic, Africa recorded the least number of cases during the first wave, with lowest rates of infections, compared to Asia, Europe, and the Americas. This statistic might be attributed to the low testing capacity, existing public health awareness and lessons learnt during Ebola epidemic. Nonetheless, the relatively low rate of infection should be an opportunity for Africa to be better prepared to overcome this and future epidemics.In this paper, the authors provide insights into the dynamics and transmission of the severe acute respiratory syndrome corona virus (SARS-CoV-2) during the first wave of the pandemic; possible explanations into the relatively low rates of infection recorded in Africa; with recommendations for Africa to continue to fight Covid-19; and position itself to effectively manage future pandemics. Keywords: Covid-19; Ebola; Science Leadership in Africa; Vaccine; SARS-COV-2; Preventative Health; Future Pandemics.

Did Science Leadership Fail SARS-CoV-2 Vaccination Acceptance?

The 21st century brought unprecedented challenges for academic medicine. Then, coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) arrived—and has attributed to more than 600,000 deaths in the United States (US) alone. Two, readily available, US Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-authorized COVID-19 mRNA vaccines are more than 90% effective in preventing Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection. Yet, only 55% of all Americans have been partially vaccinated and 45% are fully vaccinated. Most new COVID-19 cases occur in unvaccinated people. In select regions across the US, intensive care units are, once again, overfilled. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has spread far beyond healthcare causing global socioeconomic disruptions and affecting overall human well-being. In my classroom, getting it less than 60% right earns a student an F grade. America has failed to convince its people of the vaccine benefit. How? Was it the government? It is no secret that most Americans don’t trust the government. Did science leadership fail to communicate with the public? Should our educators have taught us more science? Did physicians fail to be open and transparent with their patients? Should we be a more trusting nation? Perhaps all –perhaps none—of these are contributing factors. Is human response behavior taking a toll on human life? One thing is for sure. It is a great injustice that American lives continue to be lost and that others continue to live in fear. More than two millennia ago, the philosopher Socrates argued that humility is the greatest of all virtues. In this report, I elaborate on humble leadership by scientists to improve the imperfect art of communication as a solution to heal our beloved nation.

COVID-19 Health Evidence Summary No.122

This weekly COVID-19 health evidence summary (HES) is based on 3.5 hours of desk-based research. The summary is not intended to be a comprehensive summary of available evidence on COVID-19 but aims to make original documents easily accessible to decision-makers which, if relevant to them, they should go to before making decisions. This summary covers publications on Clinical characteristics and management; Vaccines; Indirect impact of COVID-19; Social Science; Leadership and governance; Health systems; Comments, Editorials, Opinions, Blogs, News; Dashboards & Trackers; C19 Resource Hubs and Online learning & events.

COVID-19 Health Evidence Summary No.110

This weekly COVID-19 health evidence summary (HES) is based on 3.5 hours of desk-based research. The summary is not intended to be a comprehensive summary of available evidence on COVID-19 but aims to make original documents easily accessible to decision-makers which, if relevant to them, they should go to before making decisions. This summary covers publications on Clinical characteristics and management; Therapeutics; Vaccines; Indirect impact of COVID-19; Social Science; Leadership and governance; Comments, Editorials, Opinions, Blogs, News; Guidelines, Statements & Tools; Dashboards & Trackers; C19 Resource Hubs; and Online learning & events

4042 Enhancing Scientific Rigor, Reproducibility, and Reporting in Translational Science Training and Practice

OBJECTIVES/GOALS: Irreproducible and incompletely reported research lead to misallocated resources, wasted effort in pursing inappropriate avenues of investigation, and loss of public trust. To address this challenge, we employed a Team Science approach to create a multi-modal program to support Rigor, Reproducibility, and Reporting in Translational Science. METHODS/STUDY POPULATION: We conducted literature searches to reveal sources of irreproducibility and recommended corrective actions, invited leaders in the field to give lectures on opportunities to support reproducible science, and worked with the Rockefeller team science leadership group to instill an overarching rigor approach, infused into all training efforts. This multifaceted program was labeled R3 (R-cubed) for Enhancing Scientific Rigor, Reproducibility, and Reporting. RESULTS/ANTICIPATED RESULTS: Didactic Courses: Introduction to Biostatistics and Critical Thinking – focus on pitfalls in inferential statistics, consequences of poor research, and errors in published research.Scientific Writing – teaches methods and procedures in writing to ensure reproducibility. Lecture SeriesEstablished nine lectures on topics related to R3, including Data Management, Statistical Methods, Genomic Analyses, Data Repositories, Data Sharing, Pharmacy Formulation, and e-lab notebooks. WebsiteCreating a comprehensive website as repository for research, methods, programs, updates, and improvements related to R3. KL2 Clinical Scholars Seminars and NavigationScholars participate in seminars and tutorials to discuss opportunities to improve R3 across the research life-course.DISCUSSION/SIGNIFICANCE OF IMPACT: Striving for research reproducibility takes focused energy, discipline, and vigilance, but the effort is worthwhile as rigorous and reproducible science is the prerequisite for successful translation of great discoveries into improved health. CONFLICT OF INTEREST DESCRIPTION: none

4037 Assessing Leadership Skills in Translational Science Training: The Rockefeller University Leadership Survey

OBJECTIVES/GOALS: There is universal recognition of the importance of team science and team leadership. We have developed a semi-quantitative translational science specific team leadership competency assessment tool and have begun implementation studies to assess the impact of personalized feedback on the team science leadership skills of KL2 Clinical Scholars. METHODS/STUDY POPULATION: To create the instrument, we employed a modified Delphi approach by conducting a thorough literature review on Leadership to concretize the relevant constructs, then used these extracted constructs as a springboard for the Rockefeller Team Science Educators (TSE’s) to discuss and refine the leadership domain areas, collectively create domain-specific survey items. Further discussion helped refined the number, grouping, and wording. Scholars also contributed feedback in item development. We piloted the Leadership Survey by having all of the Rockefeller TSEs rate Clinical Scholars, and having each Scholar rate themselves. Each item was answered using a six-point Likert scale where a low score indicated poor expression and a high score represented excellent expression of the specific leadership attribute. RESULTS/ANTICIPATED RESULTS: Incorporation into a REDCap data base made consenting and rating process by TSE’s and the Scholars straightforward. The a priori domains (Foundational Leadership Competencies, Professionalism, Team Building and Team Sustainability, Appropriate Resource Use and Study Execution, and Regulatory Accountability) had high internal validity and good internal factor structure. The congruence between TSE and Scholar self-ratings were uniformly high, and discordance was often a function of “confidence” and “modesty” on the part of the scholar, rather than deficiency. Supporting comments were informative about performance barriers and mechanisms for improvement. Return of results allowed for the exploration of training gaps. Scholars were surveyed to gauge their reaction to the formal feedback. DISCUSSION/SIGNIFICANCE OF IMPACT: This quantification of team science leadership constructs has allowed for A)- the articulation of constructs essential for successful Translational Scientists to acquire during their training, B)- identification of gaps in that training and skill set, and C)- mechanisms for bolstering any identified gaps in these essential leadership constructs. CONFLICT OF INTEREST DESCRIPTION: None

From the Bronx to Batavia and Beyond: Leon Max Lederman (1922–2018)

Leon Max Lederman was a towering figure in the world of elementary particle physics in the second half of the 20th century. His experiments shaped our understanding of the world of particle physics. Included in the long list of his accolades was the 1988 Nobel Prize in Physics, which he shared with Melvin Schwartz and Jack Steinberger for the discovery that the muon neutrino is distinct from the electron neutrino. Among his many science leadership roles, he served for a decade as Director of Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory. Lederman was a spokesperson and champion for science and one of the most visible physicists of his generation. In his remarkable career Lederman journeyed from his youth in the Bronx, NY, to the directorship of Fermilab in Batavia, IL, to become an international proponent for physics beyond any one institution.