Many years ago, we were moved to join a charity called Antibiotic Research UK. [1] One of its patrons and principle moving spirits was Dame Sally Davies, now UK Government special envoy on antibiotics and Master of Trinity College Cambridge. Early followers of this blog, and the old Facebook posts which preceded it, will recall that it was our principal motive and raison d’etre which caused us to enter the confusing world of cyberspace. Since when, our remit has broadened somewhat.
Global warming, nuclear weapons, pollution….with all these other problems creeping up the agenda since 2015, you might be forgiven for thinking that the problem of antibiotic resistance had been solved by now. Not so, according to Dame Sally. It’s still right up there with all those other Bad Guys and may indeed have edged out Climate Change as the number one existential threat. Only the recent self-promotion of Vladimir Putin and his enthusiasm for a world Armageddon may represent a more proximal threat.
In a recent article for the New Statesman, [2] Dame Sally offers Alona Ferber a magisterial bird’s eye view of progress so far, where we are now, and hope for the future. OK, it’s a bit UK-centric-the Staggers is published in London, after all. But readers all around the world will certainly benefit on this critical state of play assessment by the Wise Woman of Cambridge. Especially if you are the owners of children or grandchildren.
[1] https://www.antibioticresearch.org.uk
[2]https://www.newstatesman.com/encounter/2022/10/sally-davies-anti-microbial-resistance-could-kill-
#antibiotic research #amr #dame sally davies #medicine
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