Five years ago this winter, the University of Washington became a leader in the local and global response to COVID-19. That infectious disease—which had its first confirmed American case in Washington state—created a worldwide pandemic and altered life for all of us.
Employees processed COVID-19 tests at the UW Virology Lab, a worldwide leader in virology research, in 2020.
Nearly every day, UW doctors and scientists appeared on national TV to help the public understand how this mysterious illness posed a threat to all of us and how we could adapt to life under this cloud.
UW experts became household names as they shared information and reassurance, helped us deal with needing to work from home, wear masks, clean our groceries and wonder when this pandemic would end. This unyielding effort demonstrated how the University fulfills its public mission to serve our community and the rest of the world with the best research, education, health-care information and treatment available.
For some, this public outreach was eye-opening, seeing the UW on the national stage. But the truth is that the UW has always been a pillar in public health, as its record in health-care innovation shows. The UW is responsible for such innovations as bone-marrow transplants to fight leukemia, the hepatitis B vaccine and the fields of pain medicine and bioengineering.
On Feb. 27, 2020, UW Medicine was responsible for something else monumental: finding the first evidence of community transmission of COVID-19 in the U.S. It turned out that the Seattle Flu Study—led by UW Professor Helen Chu—could also screen for COVID-19.
Not long after that, the UW Virology Lab found a second positive test showing evidence of community transmission. And then the director of the CDC described the Kirkland nursing home that was the first in the U.S. to experience an outbreak as ground zero.
It is five years later. Thankfully, COVID-19 no longer dominates our daily conversation the way it used to. Vaccines—which were developed in part by UW scientists—and other measures such as wearing masks, social distancing and frequently washing hands brought the disease under control. Those relentless efforts enabled life to return to normal. The UW is largely to thank for it.