Biomedical Society

2 March 2016

Thanks to the wonders of modern technology, on Thursday 11 February, members of the Biomedical Society eagerly huddled round a microphone and webcam to Skype interview Dr Calum Semple, a clinical virologist from the University of Liverpool and a world expert on dangerous infectious diseases. At the time of the Skype call he was sitting at his desk in the Ebola Treatment Centre, Freetown, Sierra Leone.

Stoics engaged in a rich dialogue, enthralled by stories of cultural burial customs that promote the spread of Ebola; discussing the new treatment using convalescent plasma; learning how Ebola is able to overcome the human immune system by shedding a multitude of decoy surface proteins; the reasons for the outbreak of new cases and the longevity of the virus in semen; and what it feels like inside the white protection suit.

During his work Dr Semple has suffered from malaria, heatstroke and dehydration. His determination to overcome these and achieve his vision of curing Ebola was truly inspiring. His closing comment to us was: “There is something in medicine for everyone, it seems daunting at the moment applying for Medical School but you shall always find yourself in something you have a passion for.”

Thank you very much to the Biomedical Society, and especially Mrs Rawlins, for being able to provide us with such an amazing opportunity.

Sophie Sander (Lower Sixth, West)