Title: The UK COVID-19 Infection Survey: data to inference to action
Abstract: The UK’s COVID-19 Infection Survey was designed and set-up at pace during April 2020, to estimate prevalence and incidence of current and past infection with SARS-CoV-2 in the general community. Over the following 3 years, it collected PCR test results from ~150-180,000 swabs every fortnight and antibody levels from ~100-150,000 blood samples every month, ultimately recruiting >500,000 million individuals from >250,000 households across all four nations of the UK. Unsurprisingly, there were numerous logistical and analytical challenges as the pandemic progressed – as well as huge opportunities to investigate immune response to vaccination and previous infection, and their impact on subsequent infection risk, symptoms, long COVID amongst many other questions. This talk will summarise the key highlights and reflect on lessons learnt for future surveillance
Biography: Sarah has worked at the Unit since its initiation in 1999, having previously worked at the MRC HIV Clinical Trials Centre since 1994. Her work includes the design and analysis of clinical trials and observational studies of treatment and management strategies for HIV and other infectious diseases, including serious bacterial infections and Hepatitis C. She has worked on projects involving both adults and children, in high-income and low/middle-income countries. Methodological research interests include the development of novel trial designs to address problems identifying the optimal duration of antibiotic treatment (MAMS-ROCI) and where there is no single standard of care (PRACTical), as well as the use of causal models to address additional non-randomised questions using data from clinical trials. She was elected to the Academy of Medical Sciences in 2019
Since April 2006, Sarah has worked part-time at the University of Oxford with the Modernising Medical Microbiology Consortium translating new whole genome sequencing approaches into microbiology practice and service and investigating electronic health records for infectious diseases research. She is currently Director of the NIHR Health Protection Research Unit in Antimicrobial Resistance and Healthcare Associated Infections and Lead of the Modernising Microbiology and Big Infection Diagnostics Theme of the NIHR Biomedical Research Centre. Most recently, she was the Chief Investigator and Academic Lead for the UK’s COVID-19 Infection Survey, for which she received an OBE in 2020.
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