Managing Pandemics (DP IB Geography)

What is a Pandemic?

Pandemics

• A pandemic occurs when a disease affects one country, multiple countries or the whole world

• The World Health Organisation will state whether a pandemic has begun 

• Famous pandemics include:

  • The Black Death in the 14th century 

  • Spanish Influenza in 1918

  • Swine Flu in 2009

  • Covid-19 in 2020

Epidemiology of Disease

• The Epidemiology of Disease is the understanding of:

  • When a disease started

  • Where it has started

  • How it started

  • Factors contributing to the spread 

• It also supports work to prevent and treat diseases

• It is a vital study that underpins the management of pandemics 

• The famous physician John Snow, named the ‘Father of Epidemiology’, was one of the first to use epidemiological thinking to assess disease outbreak

  • In London in 1854, a severe outbreak of cholera hit the city

  • Most physicians at the time assumed it to be an airborne disease

  • Using epidemiology, John Snow worked out how the disease began 

  • The disease originated from a water pump 

• We can think about disease spread using the Epidemiological Triangle

  • There are 3 factors to consider:

    • Host - characteristics of a person e.g. age, race, occupation, social status etc

    • Agent - the cause (biological, chemical, physical or nutritional)

    • Environment - what could impact the agent (temperature, food or water, pollution, housing status)

Prior Local & Global Awareness

• Local and global awareness of pandemics is important in pandemic management

• If a disease is already well known to local and global communities, people are more aware of the issues

  • This means that the disease is easier to manage and reduces the impacts

  • Novel diseases are harder to manage as people are not aware of the risks and prevention strategies 

• A good example is COVID-19:

  • The UK government adopted a fierce hand-washing strategy

  • Covid-19 is an airborne disease, therefore evidence now suggests that the focus should have been on controlling this

  • Masks and lockdowns were brought in later, resulting in huge infection levels and death toll 

• Prior local and global awareness can help us prepare for future diseases

  • Knowledge about diseases is vital:

    • Where diseases originate 

    • How diseases spread

    • How to minimise impacts

International Action

• International action involves international governments and organisations working together to combat a pandemic 

• International action is a powerful tactic in reducing disease spread and impact:

  • Global vaccination rollouts 

  • Consistent testing, tracing and treatment

  • Announcements of Public Health Emergency 

  • International border closures 

  • Relief efforts e.g. doctors, aid workers etc

  • International funding and collaboration for pandemic containment 

Role of the Media

• The media can play both a vital and destructive role in pandemic management

• Mainstream media, the news and social media can impact the portrayal of a pandemic

  • When the media informs the public about a pandemic, they may do so from a specific angle

  • This may result in empathetic reactions from the public, resulting in more awareness and knowledge about the issue 

• When based on science, it is a good source of information for the general public

• Informs the public about rules e.g. lockdowns or vaccine availability

• Poor media coverage can result in stigmas towards the disease e.g. HIV was initially labelled as a ‘gay disease’

• Western media may only begin to report on a disease outbreak in places like Africa when Westerners come home with the disease

• Media portrayal of pandemics can result in scaremongering