key: cord-0978248-e942g9we
authors: Zeng, Wu; Bouey, Jennifer; Uretsky, Elanah; Avila, Carlos; Li, Guohong; Shen, Jie; Fan, Xianqun
title: Strengthening public health governance for disease control: Experience from China’s approach to managing the COVID-19 pandemic
date: 2021-03-02
journal: Public Health
DOI: 10.1016/j.puhe.2021.02.010
sha: e4653f7a0f0262f3237d5f53e2c9f03939e37d7b
doc_id: 978248
cord_uid: e942g9we

nan

Strengthening public health governance for disease control: Experience from China's approach to managing the COVID-19 pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused many countries to reevaluate their health systems and led to huge investment in building health infrastructure, including building health facilities, training additional staff, scaling up laboratory and medical equipment, purchasing medical supplies, and strengthening public health surveillance systems, and so on. 1 However, the surge of COVID-19 cases in some countries with excellent health infrastructure and looking at the experience of China suggest that a successful response should go beyond strengthening the health infrastructure.

China was the first country severely hit by the novel virus and is also one of the first countries that successfully contained the threat of the virus with regained economic vitality 2,3 . Close examination of the approach taken by China reveals that besides health infrastructure, it is critical to build strong national commitments to public health grounded in five core principles of public health governance. These principles include strong leadership, clear accountability, swift social mobilization, high levels of public trust, and effective communication. Last, but not least, well-established internet infrastructure played an important role in disease control. Messages communicating prevention measures (e.g., wearing masks) and places to seek help were disseminated through mobile devices to ease the panic among the public. Digital technology was also widely used. A nationwide mobile-based Health Code system was used for contact tracing, and many hospitals set up telemedicine networks to minimize COVID-19's disruption of essential medical activities 8 . The use of digital technology substantially enhanced the efficiency and effectiveness of disease control interventions.

China's response to COVID-19 has certainly not been perfect. There was a likely initial delay in detecting the disease and the weak primary health system limited patient treatment at the beginning of the epidemic. Nevertheless, China's swift and decisive actions to contain COVID-19 saved lives 9 and paved the way for a quick economic rebound 9 , and sheds light on the essential elements of the public health governance 10 . As the world faces yet another surge of COVID-19 and the pandemic hits the one-year mark, bolstering national capacity for preparedness and response to COVID-19 and future pandemics should prioritize strengthening public health governance along with the health infrastructure.

Interactive: Who's funding the COVID-19 response and what are the priorities?

S. says virus cannot be controlled. China aims to prove it wrong

China's successful control of COVID-19

Lessons learned from battling COVID-19: The Korean experience

New Zealand eliminates COVID-19

Edelman trust barometer 2020: Global report

COVID-SCORE: A global survey to assess public perceptions of government responses to COVID-19 (COVID-SCORE-10)

Telemedicine during the COVID-19 pandemic: Experiences from western China

The effect of human mobility and control measures on the COVID-19 epidemic in China

Orientalism and Sinophobia in Knowledge Production on COVID-19