Technology as a tool against viruses

A forgotten layer of protection in the fight against the spread of infection

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Since time immemorial, technology has helped humanity progress. It should also be a given tool in the fight to reduce the spread of viruses. An important lesson from the coronavirus era is that initially confident misconceptions should not obscure the way forward.

Really good protection measures against the spread of infection have a long and sustainable lifespan. They also do not depend on the commitment of individuals to deliver broad benefits. This is even more important now that we are starting to open up society, offices and schools to the 'new normal'. 

There are now technologies that provide important 24/7 layers of protection in the fight against viruses and strengthen our overall resistance to different types of viruses. From advanced ionization that attacks different virus protein shells to improved ventilation, UV radiation and AI solutions. Overall, it is therefore surprising that technology has been overlooked in many discussions in recent years about protective measures against viruses and pandemics. 

Whether we focus on the present or the future, the use of scientifically proven technologies should be a matter of course. This is a basic layer of protection, complementing all the other measures available to work together to provide a strong overall protection.

Confident and unhappy statements at first

The corona pandemic has been going back and forth for a long time. And the spread of the virus, sars-cov-2, is probably something we will have to learn to live with for a while longer. Unfortunately, through mutations and new viruses, we may also experience other pandemics in the future.

Those who know their history know that viruses and the spread of infection are hardly new in human history. Mutations of existing viruses and the emergence of completely new viruses mean that we will experience new endemic diseases in the future, which may develop into pandemics. Therefore, it is important that we constantly refine our tools, and not least learn from how we acted during the challenges of the coronavirus in recent years.

A fundamental mistake that should be avoided as much as possible is initial and unambiguous statements. The World Health Organization (WHO), as well as most national health authorities, said from the beginning that the coronavirus was not airborne at all. For far too long, ongoing recommendations, statements and activities were based entirely on this quick conclusion. However, over time, these assessments and early statements have proved to be downright wrong.

Adapted tone and communication

Reflection and new knowledge have led the WHO and most other authorities around the world to backtrack on early and overly confident statements that the coronavirus is absolutely not airborne. They are now much more cautious in how they express themselves and note that even viruses of the SARS-COV-2 type can be droplets in size, which can remain in the air for a relatively long time. Thus, factors such as air exchange and air purification suddenly become important and should be given a clearer focus.

Today we can conclude that most authorities and organizations have revised their initial perception of the existence or non-existence of airborne infection. This is good, but through a gradual and rather slow adjustment, large parts of society have also missed important technical solutions that could have reduced the general spread of infection.

Much can and will be said about the years of the coronavirus pandemic. One mistake we should not repeat is jumping to conclusions and not using technology as a more powerful tool in the fight against future major and minor virus outbreaks.

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