An ahistorical perspective. Public health has been a great tool for improving health and longevity overall. It has been the driver of sanitation,clean water and the near eradication of previously crippling/deadly diseases such as smallpox,tuberculosis,malaria,cholera et.al. The recent issues with COVID demonstrate a great need for honesty and accountability in the public health infrastructure, but total elimination of this function would be a grave error.

My opinion is that the mixture of politics and uncertainty associated with the pandemic allowed those with a lust for power and control to exploit confusion and panic of a rapidly spreading disease. Politicians and authorities were loathe to confess uncertainty/ignorance of effective responses to a novel virus, and reverted to base instincts. As my brother always says, when you mix politics with healthcare, you get politics.

So do not throw out 100+ years of success in a zeal to reform/ avenge recent mistakes. Most public health professionals and physicians/providers were scrambling to find solutions to immediate problems, and grasping for acceptable treatments. The vast majority did not profit personally or financially by following “expert” advice.

Now is the time for review and reflection on what actions were helpful, and which were ineffective. The tragedy would certainly be worse if no lessons can be learned.