How to gain public confidence in the face of coronavirus

Step 1: Have a realistic communication plan. Daily briefings, chaired by the Vice President and a trusted scientist, like Anthony S. Fauci of the National Institute of Allergies and Infectious Diseases, should inform the public of the national and global situation coronavirus. They must be factual and accurate as any concealment or manipulation of data will erode public confidence. In addition, the President must recognize very clearly that he understands the situation and outline the concrete measures taken to mitigate it. Here's a potential start: this is a new virus with many unknowns. We expect the situation to worsen, with many more Americans infected and some even dying before improving. Here is what the administration is doing in a concerted manner to remedy the situation, followed by the concrete measures which are taken.

2nd step: Establish a White House coronavirus war room as soon as possible. Write a dozen officials from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the National Institutes of Health, departments of state and homeland security and other agencies such as the United States Agency for international development to ensure that solid plans are coordinated, communicated and executed with the full range of government resources. Coronavirus is a health problem. It is not appropriate to add more Cabinet Secretaries to a working group. We need a war room made up of scientists and health experts.

Step 3: Call a White House meeting with public health officials from the 50 states. To improve results, ensure that containment, testing and treatment efforts are clearly communicated and executed consistently across the country.

Step 4: Invite the Director General of the World Health Organization to the White House to coordinate national and international response plans. Announce publicly that the US government will provide financial support l & # 39; WHO in the fight against coronaviruses, using funds allocated by Congress.

Step 5: Distribute coronavirus test kits across the country. We got too much problems with testing, and these problems seem to persist. We need to lower the testing barrier so that thousands of tests are performed every day to allow scientists to understand the true prevalence and trajectory of the virus.

Step 6: Urge Chinese President Xi Jinping to allow public health officials from the United States and WHO free access to his country. To enrich our understanding of the disease and end the epidemic, we need to check the epidemiological data and conduct trials of therapeutic drugs preferably under the watchful eye of the NIH.

Step 7: Instruct the Food and Drug Administration to delineate and secure alternative supply chains for drugs and raw chemicals for the manufacture of drugs. The global drug supply chain is highly dependent on China for both raw materials and finished drugs, especially generics. Given the viruss impact there, we have to make sure that drugs can continue to be produced. Convening leaders of pharmaceutical and chemical companies to the White House and assigning responsibility to the FDA for their collaboration will minimize disruption downstream of drug distribution.

Step 8: Call producers of personal protective equipment, such as dresses and masks, at the White House. It’s good that the White House got tens of millions of masks. But there is more than personal protective equipment (PPE), including overalls and gloves. The government must guarantee the supply of all PPE and guarantee their availability to hospitals in the first place, as well as guarantee their distribution to public health officials and necessary sites. We also need to explore the possibility of increased domestic, or at least North American, production of these essential items.

Step 9: Instruct the CDC to design a possible response to an increased need for hospital beds. The government may be required to requisition free space or to set up hospital tents in the event of large-scale infections. The CDC should study Canadian efforts during the SAR epidemic and adapt what works.

Step 10: Set clear rule for canceling schools and public events. Public assurance depends on decisive action, clear and consistent guidelines will help local public health officials to make judgments. The CDC should establish guidelines on when a community should recommend canceling the school and stopping sporting events and other mass meetings.

These 10 steps do not cover everything, but they are a logical starting point for addressing current threats and building public confidence in the response of governments to covid-19. Such confidence is essential to avoid panic; if circumstances worsen, it is important that the public generally adhere to government advice. Reducing a rapidly escalating problem will promote fear and skepticism and will ultimately cost lives.