Lessons from COVID-19 for Pandemic Preparedness: Proceedings from a Multi-Stakeholder Think Tank.

Overview

While the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic continues to present global challenges, sufficient time has passed to reflect on lessons learned and use those insights to inform policy and approaches to prepare for the next pandemic. In May 2022, the Duke Clinical Research Institute (DCRI) convened a Think Tank with thought-leaders from academia, clinical practice, the pharmaceutical industry, patient advocacy, the National Institutes of Health, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), to share firsthand, expert knowledge of the insights gained from the COVID-19 pandemic and how this acquired knowledge can help inform the next pandemic response. The Think Tank focused on pandemic preparedness, therapeutics, vaccines, and challenges related to clinical trial design and scale-up during the early phase of a pandemic. Based on the multi-faceted discussions, we outline ten key steps to an improved and equitable pandemic response.