Working group

• The Streaming Video Technology Alliance (SVTA), a global technical association developing solutions to address critical technical challenges in delivering a high-quality video experience at scale, is holding its annual SEGMENTS conference today at the Denver Marriott Tech Center.
• As part of Streaming Tech Week, SEGMENTS:2024 is a one-day public event that focuses on streaming operations.
• Attendees will learn how to solve key technical operational challenges, gather best practices for delivering the best viewer experience at scale, and network with peers who are driving innovation across the streaming video landscape.
• “The initial launch of the SEGMENTS conference in 2023 was a great success,” said Jason Thibeault, CEO of the SVTA.

• In May 2023 the World Health Organization (WHO) declared COVID was no longer a public health emergency of international concern.
• But the virus continues to infect millions of people globally and the WHO recognises COVID as an ongoing pandemic.
• As of February 1 there were 287 outbreaks in residential aged care homes, and people are still dying from the virus.

Vaccination

• COVID vaccination reduces severe illness and can in turn reduce pressure on the health system.
• Boosters are important as we know immunity wanes over time, both after infection and vaccination.
• There’s also no recommendation that people at greater occupational risk of catching COVID, such as health-care workers, childcare workers or emergency and essential services workers receive another vaccination at this stage.
• Also, although older people are generally at greatest risk from a COVID infection, COVID in younger age groups can still in some cases cause severe and potentially long-term illness (and we know vaccination reduces the risk of long COVID).

• Recent figures show only 16.6% of people aged between 65 and 74 have received a booster dose in the past six months.
• The Australian government has recognised the need for a strong vaccination program as a means to minimise levels of severe COVID and death.

Testing

• While testing is encouraged if you have COVID symptoms, there’s no requirement or incentive to test or report positive results.
• In New South Wales for example, laboratory confirmed cases are trending downwards while wastewater testing suggests COVID prevalence remains high.

Ventilation

• In September 2023 the Australasian Health Infrastructure Alliance released guidance on pandemic preparedness.
• This document calls for the design of any new health-care building to take minimising the risk of infection transmission into account.

• Strategies to optimise ventilation in buildings must involve early consultation with qualified ventilation specialists who can address requirements such as the air exchange rate relative to the size of the building and number of expected occupants.
• Mandating this would ensure we build facilities which minimise the transmission of most respiratory infections – not just COVID.

Other things

• Employers have a responsibility to enable access to paid sick leave, especially for those working with vulnerable communities and in health care.
• Hand hygiene, although a foundation of infection prevention and control, appears to have less of a role in controlling COVID transmission.

• Stephane is also the President of the Australasian College for Infection Prevention and Control (ACIPC) and was the recipient of an Early Career Research Grant from ACIPC in 2016.
• Peta-Anne undertakes contracted consultancies for the World Health Organization and is a focal point for the Global Outbreak Alert and Response Network.
• Sally is President Elect of the Australasian College for Infection Prevention and Control and a recipient of an ACIPC Early Career Researcher Grant in 2023.

• In charting the policy and legislative evolution since the 2020 report, “Repair and Recovery in Long-Term Care” makes eight recommendations for urgent action.
• Repair and recovery, while they may take near Herculean effort and a grit akin to dust-bowl determination, is possible.
• It is going to take consequential action,” says Chair of the Working Group, Dr. Carole Estabrooks, FRSC, University of Alberta.
• The Task Force established a series of Working Groups to rapidly develop Policy Briefings, with the objective of supporting policy makers with evidence to inform their decisions.

• As the digital ecosystem evolves, we must collaborate in creating interoperable solutions that respect privacy while harnessing the power of data.
• DrivenIQ's sponsorship of the IAB Annual Leadership Meeting, as well as its participation in the IAB Tech Lab's Working Groups, reflects its commitment to driving industry standards forward.
• "As the digital ecosystem evolves, we must collaborate in creating interoperable solutions that respect privacy while harnessing the power of data," said Albert Thompson, Founder and CEO of DrivenIQ.
• This year's IAB Annual Leadership Meeting focuses on critical topics like generative AI, responsible media, the evolution of commerce and streaming, and more.