The health of the public, at this juncture, hinges on making the politically unpopular decision and choosing the correct and challenging road to better safeguard the public against the coronavirus. We must not heed the extremists on one side, who view the lockdown as a magic pill for the pandemic while ignoring the immense damage and debatable benefits, or those on the other side who downplay the threat posed by the pandemic. We must choose the middle road, the "golden path" in the spirit of Maimonides.
Follow Israel Hayom on Facebook and Twitter
Public health is defined as the science and art of disease prevention, life extension, the improvement of quality of life and promotion of good health facilitated through organized initiatives and informed decisions made by society, public and private groups, communities and individuals. We all need to exhibit responsibility for our health in general, and during the corona pandemic in particular, especially our elected officials in the government and Knesset. We must all understand now that this is an emergency situation that necessitates a drastic lifestyle change. We all need to adhere to public health professionals' safety guidelines for preventing infection. But public health is not just a matter of preventing the coronavirus. Public health obligates a broad spectrum of considerations pertaining to health, economy and society and empowers the public so that its motivation for protecting its own health becomes internalized.
Thus far, management of the corona crisis has been a failure and irresponsible and has brought us to the point of widespread infection across the country. It has also broken the public's trust. Hospitals have raised a red flag due to severe exhaustion and overcapacity amid a significant spike in infections. Now, stringent measures must be implemented countrywide for a limited period of time to reduce the rate of infection and to stabilize the healthcare system. Simultaneously, an organized plan of action is needed to facilitate daily routine life after this period and strengthen the public health system, clinics and hospitals.
The government, however, needs be responsible, meaning not shutting down the entire country in a manner that causes an unnecessary and devastating economic-social-health disaster. Today, our ministers must not opt for the politically expedient solution of a general lockdown. A lockdown is not a sustainable solution. It severely damages the social fabric and the public's trust, without tangibly helping us cope with the pandemic in the long term. In short, the first stage of the lockdown will be more detrimental than beneficial, hence the need to skip immediately to the second phase ("tightened restraint"), in accordance with the original recommendation presented by the corona commissioner's professional task force.
We know today that the majority of coronavirus infections occur in closed spaces. The order of the day, therefore, is to radically avoid contact with people in closed spaces. The plan the government is expected to discuss on Sunday does not allow prayer services in the open air, even though that's where it's safest. This decision contradicts epidemiological logic and the experts' recommendations.
The plan would impose a 500-yard boundary outside the home, contrary to the recommendations put forth by the corona commissioner's professional task force. This is a negligent proposal that will cause tremendous damage, without justification, to the public's health and we, public health physicians, hope the ministers act responsibly and remove this clause from the plan. A balanced plan, based on epidemiological logic, will receive the public's trust and can be implemented successfully. A draconian plan consisting of a general lockdown will not receive the public's trust and could lead us to the abyss.
Subscribe to Israel Hayom's daily newsletter and never miss our top stories!
