Public health is a serious issue that reflects the level of social development in a particular community. Despite remarkable progress that has been made in recent decades, there are still numerous threats formed by known or unknown viruses, malicious germs, and bacteria. While some of those are yet to be studied, others have already been examined. Thus, an adverse impact of the latter might be reduced significantly. For instance, a wide-known influenza pandemic was responsible for 50-100 million deaths during 1918-1919 (Pavia, 2019). However, a hundred years later, an ultimate preventative approach is not found.
A large-scale project on pandemics prevention is currently being managed by the US Department of Health and Human Services. It includes a strategy of both vaccination and information policies which provide a detailed guide on the most effective measures against the disease. According to Pavia, the examples include “school closure, limiting public gatherings and social distancing”. In a sense, the information policy might sometimes seem like a more important step, yet, its effect remains rather limited (Pavia, 2019). At the same time, scientists work out more efficient forms of vaccines, reducing the impact and further spread of the disease. In this way, pharmaceutical intervention contributes more to the prevention of pandemics, so it is of utmost importance to apply this method in addition to educational events.
References
Pavia, A. (2019). One hundred years after the 1918 pandemic: new concepts for preparing for influenza pandemics. Current Opinion in Infectious Diseases, 32(4), 365-371.