Dr Simon Mardel OBE

Locum Consultant in ED, NHS

I have worked in Emergency Medicine and  with NGOs and WHO (EURO and  HQ) in over  30 countries or missions.  Since 1997 most of this work was as a clinician responding to Lassa, Marburg, Ebola Haemorrhagic fevers,  SARS, severe dengue, H5N1 or pandemic H1N1 and covid-19.  I have witnessed at first hand how most of these viruses will amplify disastrously in health care settings, and the requirement for staff  to achieve an almost  military level of discipline in adhering collectively to the infection prevention and control measures.  As health care globally becomes more sophisticated and more hands on e.g. tackling consequences of  demographic shift; I have witnessed standard and transmission based precautions frequently disrespected and overlooked in the face of those increasing health demands on staff, with severe consequences for staff safety, patient safety and epidemic control.