Medical populism and the COVID-19 pandemic

ABSTRACT

This paper uses the vocabulary of ‘medical populism’ to identify and analyse the political constructions of (and responses to) the COVID-19 pandemic in Brazil, the Philippines, and the United States from January to mid-July 2020, particularly by the countries’ heads of state: Jair Bolsonaro, Rodrigo Duterte, and Donald Trump. In all three countries, the leaders’ responses to the outbreak can be characterised by the following features: simplifying the pandemic by downplaying its impacts or touting easy solutions or treatments, spectacularizing their responses to crisis, forging divisions between the ‘people’ and dangerous ‘others’, and making medical knowledge claims to support the above. Taken together, the case studies illuminate the role of individual political actors in defining public health crises, suggesting that medical populism is not an exceptional, but a familiar response to them. This paper concludes by offering recommendations for global health in anticipating and responding to pandemics and infectious disease outbreaks.     

University-Associated SARS-CoV-2 Omicron BA.2 Infections,Maricopa County,Arizona, USA, 2022

We investigated a university-affiliated cohort of SARS-CoV-2 Omicron BA.2 infections in Arizona, USA. Of 44 cases, 43 were among students; 26 persons were symptomatic, 8 sought medical care, but none were hospitalized. Most (55%) persons had completed a primary vaccine series; 8 received booster vaccines. BA.2 infection was mild in this young cohort.     

Investigation of COVID-19 Outbreak among Wildland Firefighters during Wildfire Response,Colorado, USA, 2020

A COVID-19 outbreak occurred among Cameron Peak Fire responders in Colorado, USA, during August 2020–January 2021. The Cameron Peak Fire was the largest recorded wildfire in Colorado history, lasting August–December 2020. At least 6,123 responders were involved, including 1,260 firefighters in 63 crews who mobilized to the fire camps. A total of 79 COVID-19 cases were identified among responders, and 273 close contacts were quarantined. State and local public health investigated the outbreak and coordinated with wildfire management teams to prevent disease spread. We performed whole-genome sequencing and applied social network analysis to visualize clusters and transmission dynamics. Phylogenetic analysis identified 8 lineages among sequenced specimens, implying multiple introductions. Social network analysis identified spread between and within crews. Strategies such as implementing symptom screening and testing of arriving responders, educating responders about overlapping symptoms of smoke inhalation and COVID-19, improving physical distancing of crews, and encouraging vaccinations are recommended.     

Epidemiologic and Genomic Analysis of SARS-CoV-2 Delta Variant Superspreading Event in Nightclub,the Netherlands,June 2021

We report a severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 superspreading event in the Netherlands after distancing rules were lifted in nightclubs, despite requiring a negative test or vaccination. This occurrence illustrates the potential for rapid dissemination of variants in largely unvaccinated populations under such conditions. We detected subsequent community transmission of this strain.     

EARS在北京市流感大流行预警中的应用

目的：阐明累积和法用于北京市流感暴发预警的有效性。方法:应用基于累积和算法的早期异常报告系统（early aberration reporting system, EARS）对北京市流感样病例监测数据进行预警分析,以流感病原学监测结果作为判断流感高峰来临的金标准。 结果:2009年至2010年北京市共有421家医院开展了流感样病例监测,7家网络实验室开展了流感病原学监测。2009年6月至2010年4月,421家医院的平均流感样病例百分比为2.56%,共在11家医院采集流感样病例咽拭子19 262份,分离流感病毒5 045株,以新甲型H1N1流感病毒为主。使用累积和法对北京市二级以上医院流感样病例监测数据进行分析较好地预警了流感高峰的来临。结论:应用累积和法对北京市流感监测数据进行分析,可以高效准确地对流感高峰进行预警。     

医院儿科一次鼠伤寒暴发流行调查报告

本文报告某县医院儿科一次鼠伤寒暴发流行;共发病64例,病死8例,主要系院内交叉感染引起.发病者均为3岁以下小儿,起病多有呼吸道症状和腹泻、胀血便等消化道症状.病例中53.2%大便培养阳性;病人陪人大便和病房内污染物培养阳性率分别为13.3%和12.5%.经彻底的清理、封闭、消毒等严格措施后,迅速控制了流行.     

某部队急性病毒性肝炎的血清流行病学调查分析

作者于1987年12月至1988年3月对某部队急性病毒性肝炎进行了血清流行病学调查。发现该部队共发病10例,其中甲肝9例,乙肝1例;9例甲肝中,5例散在发生于5个连队,其余4例为1个连队暴发所致。结果表明:该部队急性病毒性肝炎的发生以甲肝为主,多以散发形式出现,在一定条件下也可造成部队内小暴发,而无续发病例。这些特征与该人群抗-HAV流行率达80％以上,已具有免疫屏障作用有关。当前,部队对甲肝的防治不容忽视。     

New generation sequencing in pathogen discovery and microbial surveillance

23rd European Congress of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (ECCMID).

Berlin, Germany, 27–30 April 2013

The annual congress of the European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (ESCMID) is recognized as the largest European congress for the presentation and discussion of the key priorities and more recent scientific developments in the fields of clinical microbiology and infection. This year, it attracted almost 10,000 participants from all over the world. Keynote lectures, symposia, meet-the-expert sessions, educational workshops, poster and oral sessions covered the diagnosis, treatment, epidemiology and prevention of infectious diseases, as well as related basic microbiology. Moreover, interactive sessions addressing specific subjects underlined the important educational aspect of the ECCMID’s congress. The scientific program, abstracts, oral presentations are available at their website . This meeting report is focused on one of the several challenging and one of the most transversal topics of the meeting: the application of the next-generation sequencing (NGS) to the microbial world.     

Evolution of Ebola Virus Disease from Exotic Infection to Global Health Priority,Liberia, Mid-2014

Over the span of a few weeks during July and August 2014, events in West Africa changed perceptions of Ebola virus disease (EVD) from an exotic tropical disease to a priority for global health security. We describe observations during that time of a field team from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and personnel of the Liberian Ministry of Health and Social Welfare. We outline the early epidemiology of EVD within Liberia, including the practical limitations on surveillance and the effect on the country’s health care system, such as infections among health care workers. During this time, priorities included strengthening EVD surveillance; establishing safe settings for EVD patient care (and considering alternative isolation and care models when Ebola Treatment Units were overwhelmed); improving infection control practices; establishing an incident management system; and working with Liberian airport authorities to implement EVD screening of departing passengers.     

Characteristics of Tuberculosis Cases that Started Outbreaks in the United States, 2002–2011

A review of 26 tuberculosis outbreaks in the United States (2002–2011) showed that initial source case-patients had long infectious periods (median 10 months) and were characterized by substance abuse, incarceration, and homelessness. Improved timeliness of diagnosis and thorough contact investigations for such cases may reduce the risk for outbreaks.