Don’t Quote Me provides an insight into Dr Ray Kent, the Chief Operating Officer of The Pandemic Institute. Ray supports leading-edge research into emerging infectious diseases and facilitates knowledge exchange with industry.
Describe your role in 15 words
I lead the strategic development of The Pandemic Institute, alongside its Director, Professor Tom Solomon.
What does ‘success’ mean to you?
Putting in place in Liverpool the infrastructure to ensure that the UK and wider world is better prepared to tackle emerging infectious diseases and pandemic threats. This will require a huge team-effort and ‘success’ will be the result of us all pulling together, consistently over time, and in the same direction.
What two attributes are most important in your job?
People skills, and the ability to create a compelling narrative for The Pandemic Institute.
What do you find rewarding about your job?
Two things: firstly, the privilege of being able to work with brilliant people to help them achieve their goals. Secondly, the challenge of believing in six impossible things before breakfast, and through trial and error, turning them into reality.
What is your most frequently asked question?
I’m often asked, ‘What is the disease that will cause the next pandemic?’ To which I do not know the answer.
What are your three best qualities?
Faith, hope, love.
What do you get passionate about?
I get passionate about the injustices I see in our society, particularly those relating to geographical inequalities in health and social care provision, and (lack of) access to opportunity for rewarding work with decent pay and conditions. I’m also shocked at how we as a nation are sleepwalking into the next epidemic or pandemic, seemingly having learned little about the need to invest in pandemic preparedness. Whilst I can affect the former only indirectly by casting my vote, I’m trying my best to affect the latter through my work for The Pandemic Institute.
In terms of hobbies, I retain the same passion for hard-rock geology that I had when I first encountered igneous rocks on a field trip to Cornwall in 1985. While I’ve not been active in researching and publishing in this area since the early-2000’s, I’ve kept up with the scientific literature and one day will get around to writing that final ‘missing’ paper.
What is the worst job you have ever had?
Delivering 500 copies of a free newspaper each week, on my bike and often in the pouring rain, for the princely sum of £4.76. I did it for three years. It wasn’t even a good free newspaper.
What work issues keep you up at night?
The usual worries about meeting deadlines and keeping all the plates spinning.
What are you reading at the moment?
Highways and Byways in Northumbria. First published in 1920, it provides a potted history of the rural county of Northumberland as it was imagined by the author over a century ago. Also, I’ve just finished reading Northumbria Rocks. Disappointingly it wasn’t about the heavy-metal scene in the North-East of England but is a geological excursion guide to places in Northumberland. Together these two books reflect my main interests – the countryside and geology.
My favourite quote is…
From the Bible, John’s Gospel, chapter three, verse sixteen. Tells us all we need to know really.
If I had a million pounds I would…
Split it between my wife and kids, and various charities.
My ideal dinner guest would be…
Paul the Apostle, a.k.a. Saint Paul, who I think would blow my mind AND offer to do the washing up after the meal.