Australia Healthcare Podcast

The ABC podcast highlights the measures taken by Victoria, a state in Australia, to handle the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. Cases of Covid-19 surged in some parts of Victoria, especially Melbourne after the government uplifted a lockdown it had imposed earlier. The surge in cases forced the government to put Melbourne under lockdown again as a containment measure for Covid-19. The government also implemented other measures, such as social distancing. However, the state has not implemented some of the guidelines recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO), such as the wearing of masks. In addition, some people have refused to take Covid-19 tests. 

With this in mind, the big question is: will the measures implemented by the government help curb the spread of coronavirus in Melbourne? Also, given that there has not been a treatment or a vaccine for Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) and the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (MERS-CoV), will there be a treatment or vaccine for coronavirus? Or could we see the use of antiviral drugs for Covid-19 just like for HIV? These thought-provoking questions raise many concerns about the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. 

There is a lot of information I gleaned from the podcast that was not covered in the course resources. First, I learned that SARS and MERS have not treatment or vaccines. Secondly, I learned that antiviral drugs for Covid-19 could be developed to help manage Covid-19 if a vaccine is not found. Covid-19 significantly impacts population health and the economy. The pandemic has disrupted health services and halted economic activities. Low-income nations or regions are most affected. 

I was aware of the health problem discussed in the podcast prior to viewing the podcast. The media covers and provides updates about the coronavirus pandemic across the globe daily. The WHO also addresses this ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. In fact, the organization has provided some guidelines to curb the spread of the virus.