Lessons taken from Pandemia

What did Covid taught us, and what is else to protect public health

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At the end of winter and early spring of 2020, the coronavirus pandemia was increased by a geographically limited viral infection in a full national emergency, disrupting life as we knew. Destruction was extraordinary: massive mortality and widespread trauma. While the world base, public health professionals were mobilized, moving to high clothing to address the crisis.

Five years later, the numbers are stunning: globally, more than 20 million lives have been lost. In the United States, the number of deaths has exceeded 1.2 million – greater than victims of civil wars, the world and Vietnam combined. Tragically, the impact of the pandemia continues, with at least 1,000 people dying from Covid every week, 75% of them in the US, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).

While the wounds of the disease and the feelings of loss of control control, this anniversary offers an opportunity for critical reflection: to get the reserve of what we learned, what worked and how to better protect public health against future pandemics. One fact is safe: the public health workers of the first place of the country, nurses, social workers and staff up and down the hierarchy of our complex health delivery system-mainly their work to fight a new virus, buying critical time until the first vaccines are developed.

The spread of the latest and heartfelt measles in New Mexico and Texas highlight continuous strategies for continuous supervision and prevention (IE vaccination). Indeed, the lessons we take with us in the future include:

A strong public health system is essential to combating new threats. In addition to combating chronic illness, the public health system responds to crises that stop explosions before they begin.

Pandemia told us how important it is to have systems that can find quickly and trace new viruses as they spread. It was used in a new era of genomic supervision, allowing scientists to trace the evolution of coronavirus, informing public health strategies.

Diagnostic tests helped identify who was infected with the virus to pursue its spread in communities and lead treatment decisions. Contact tracers, on the other hand, demolished the transmission chains by notifying potentially exposed individuals and providing essential guidelines.

Future pandemics can require quick, mass testing. This requires abundant supplies, trained staff and a reserve of generic tests to avoid absences.

Lesson 2: Develop countermeasures and interference

Before a Covid vaccine was available, public health leaders relied on daily human actions to control the virus. These included masking, social distancing, travel restrictions and closing school and business. Interventions attracted many people’s bright criticism and are still a strong political point, but they undoubtedly saved hundreds of thousands of lives.

At first, experts addressed past explosion data and new technology tools to quickly determine the best course of action. Due to Covid, scientists quickly created advanced computer models to predict how the virus will spread. These models helped governments make smart choices by showing what can happen with various actions, such as vaccinations or blockages.

Lesson 3: Make safe and effective vaccines for everyone

Covid-19 vaccines are the fastest vaccines ever created. Rapid development, production and distribution of safe, effective vaccines at the time of registration – one year – is an extraordinary achievement that prevents countless deaths. But the inequalities continued, with marginalized communities that suffered lower levels of vaccination because they had no access to health care, transport or information.

Creating new medicines and vaccines for the next pandemia will be expensive and will take time. To prepare, we need to be looking for existing medicines and vaccines that can be rebuilt and collected for future use. This means having a system to identify potential candidates and make sure they are safe, effective and accessible.

Lesson 4: Build and maintain confidence by protecting communication channels

In a rapidly developing pandemic, where evidence and instructions are constantly changing, transparent communication is primary. Public faith is corroded when reasoning after decisions lacks transparency, preventing the acceptance of critical public health measures.

In order to maintain confidence and misinformation of combat, constant efforts are needed to engage communities, exchange verified information and improve health literacy. This includes cooperation with stakeholders, actively publishing accurate information and improving media reading skills.

Lesson 5: Invest in people and partnerships

Covid exposed deep health inequality, with vulnerable communities that suffered worse results. Often, colorful communities, the elderly and those with limited resources faced higher levels of infection, more serious illnesses and greater economic difficulties. This underlines the urgent need for target interference that address the causes of the root.

Hyperlocal commitment and community partnerships offer a strong way to address these inequalities. By working directly with communities, we can create adapted solutions that promote health equality.

Strong partnerships are essential, and, in a pandemic, the world is small. This requires cooperation with the Academy, industry, government agencies and international bodies such as the World Health Organization, which played a key role in the global response to the pandemia. As a United Nations agency comprised of 194 Member States including the US, the WHO provided guidance, distributed epidemiological updates and established international agreements needed for a coordinated global effort.