# 1842
Last year I was invited, along with a dozen others, to write for the HHS's Pandemic Leadership Blog. If you've not visited this site, there is a wealth of pandemic related blogging and information to be had there; nearly 3 dozen blogs, and more than 1000 readers comments.
Given my absence this week, I thought it would be appropriate to rerun one of my essays from that project. Hopefully it may inspire you to go and read some of the other offerings there.
In the year since this essay was written, the HHS has provided toolkits that provide at least some of the resources to empower the public that I was asking for in this blog. The main message, that we are the solution, remains just as vital as it was a year ago.
The Stuff That Solutions Are Made Of
· What do I need from the Department of Health and Human Services — or others — to be able to make a contribution?
While a pandemic would be an overwhelming event, one that no government could possibly handle on their own, we have a secret weapon at our disposal, one that could well change the course and outcome of a crisis.
That weapon? We, the people.
Ordinary citizens like you and I. We are the stuff that solutions are made of. The States and Federal government can make plans, and prepare on a macro level, but ultimately we are the ones who will have to answer the call in our communities.
We’ve grown accustomed to treating our nation like a 5 star resort, where if a problem with the accommodations crops up, we call the front desk and complain.
“Hello? I’d like to report a pandemic in my room. Please send someone up right away. Thanks“
Under normal circumstances, that’s how things work. We pay our taxes, and in return we expect the government to handle the big problems for us while we concentrate on working, raising our families, and chasing the fabled American Dream. We aren’t always satisfied with the results, but that’s our system, and so we generally sigh, accept what we get, and go on.
Sometimes though, perhaps once in a generation, a crisis comes along that is simply too big for the government to handle alone. When that happens, they must turn to the people for help. The last time the government did this was during World War II, and history shows it was the right move. In fact, the efforts on the home front made the difference in the outcome of that war.
The corollaries between then and now are remarkable.
In 1941, we watched from a distance as the war in Europe raged on, and while we we’re sympathetic to those fighting aggression and annexation in Europe, we felt we were protected by two vast oceans; that it wasn’t our war. We lent support to England and Russia with the lend-lease program, but were unwilling to join the fight.
It wasn’t until after Pearl Harbor, and the destruction of the Pacific Fleet, that we felt our backs were against the wall and our nation rallied. It was, we realized, no longer a European problem; it was our problem too.
After the shock of December 7th, we rapidly mobilized a great nation.
Millions of men and women flocked to recruiting stations to enlist, knowing full well they were going in harm’s way. My father was one of them, all of 17 years of age when he joined the navy. From cities and farms they came, because their nation needed them.
During those early dark days of 1942 the outcome of the war was in real doubt, as we’d joined in late, and were starting with a diminished military and an economy still lagging from the effects of a decade long depression. There were many who believed the war was lost before it started, and we should simply capitulate.
But a miracle of sorts occurred. Not unlike the one we need today.
On the home front millions more joined the war effort.
Housewives took off their aprons and donned tool belts, went to work in shipyards and airplane factories, and the legend of Rosie the Riveter was born. Ordinary citizens, many too old for active service, volunteered to become block wardens and aircraft spotters. Teenagers rolled bandages or served donuts for the Red Cross, and volunteers worked in VA hospitals and USO clubs around the nation. Everyone recycled for the war effort, housewives collected grease, and people accepted the need for ration coupons and meatless Tuesdays.
The media, radio and movies mostly, rallied the nation with what today is considered blatant propaganda, but there can be no doubt that their efforts enabled us to meet an almost impossible challenge. Bing Crosby, Bob Hope, the Andrews Sisters, and hundreds of other celebrities lent their voices to the war effort. They told us to buy war bonds, and we did. They reminded us to recycle, and we did.
They told us to believe in ourselves, and that we could win.
And we did.
We went from a badly weakened military to a fighting force in a matter of months. In time, hundreds of aircraft began to roll off of assembly lines each week, and by the end of the war, the Navy was launching a new liberty ship nearly every day.
It was a remarkable achievement.
Looking back, it took more than a government and a military to win that war. It took the help and full cooperation of the American people. Right now, while we face a different threat, the solutions are the same.
As in 1940, we aren’t preparing for the battle to come, we are sleeping peacefully, unaware of the gathering storm. Unlike 70 years ago, we need to reawaken the American spirit and rally the nation before we see an attack on our soil.
The government, despite their best efforts, cannot fight a pandemic alone. They will need our help. But for that to happen, they must be willing to enable our participation.
During WWII, there were people called ‘dollar-a-year-men‘, business executives and community leaders who served their nations at little or no pay. The government paid their expenses, but they donated their time. They did it because they felt it was their patriotic duty: an old, but honorable concept. They weren’t part of the government, or the military, but we’re recognized by those entities as genuine partners in the war effort. They lent their time, support, and expertise, because they realized their country needed them.
We need to reawaken that spirit. Enable it, and encourage it.
One of the best reservoirs of talent available to the government today are members of flu forums, sometimes called flubies, who already are well informed, passionate, and ahead of the curve on pandemic preparation. Some of them are already giving presentations in their communities, but there are many more who would, if encouraged.
Pandemic flu preparedness isn’t something that can be adequately conveyed to the public in 30-second public service announcements, or drive-by newspaper articles. The subject is too complex, and people need to have their questions answered. In my experience, it takes an hour just to hit the high points.
The best, and perhaps the only effective way to get the message out are through community town hall style meetings.
We need knowledgeable people who can do responsible presentations in every school, church, community center, and civic organization in the nation. Citizens need to know how to prepare, what to expect, and how to deal with it. But in order for this to happen, the government must enable, encourage, and most importantly, sanction these presentations.
The message can be standardized, and presented without raising undo alarm. But it mustn’t be watered down or sugar coated. The public won’t panic if they are properly informed. Panic only comes from an absence of knowledge. While the primary message should be about pandemic flu, this is also an opportunity to present an ‘all-threats‘ preparedness message, one that would pertain not only to a pandemic, but also to hurricanes, earthquakes, and other natural disasters.
Imagine the cumulative impact of having hundreds of community pandemic awareness meetings each month across this country? The message would be picked up by local media, and the word would be spread by attendee’s to families and friends. We would have an opportunity to instill a preparedness meme in our country, which would serve us well in any crisis. And we can tailor each presentation to the audience, increasing its effectiveness.
Retired doctors and nurses, and yes, even old retired medics like myself, can begin teaching home flu care and preventative hygiene classes in our communities. The government has already acknowledged that most flu victims won’t be able to receive hospital care. The next step is to empower people to care for their loved ones in a pandemic.
Local health departments are understaffed and under budgeted. They don’t have time to visit every civic organization, trailer park clubhouse, church and school to deliver this message.
Thirty years ago, during the Swine Flu scare of 1976, as a young medic I was enlisted by the local Health Department to do exactly that, and during that summer I spoke at dozens of venues. These presentations were considered a great success, and the audiences were very receptive.
Oh, I understand the reluctance. Can you trust us? Can we be professional? Can we deliver the message without sparking undo panic or alarm?
I believe the answer to all of those questions is ‘yes’.
Many of us in the flubie community are products of the cold war. Most of us are in our 40’s or 50’s. We grew up under the specter of the A-bomb. We learned to ‘duck and cover’ as children, and knew not to look at the flash. We remember the civil defense films, shown in every classroom in the nation during the 1960’s, and the tense days of the Cuban Missile Crisis. At the age of 8, I probably knew more about fallout shelters and radiation sickness than most Americans know about pandemic flu today.
We didn’t panic, or act recklessly then, and we won’t now.
In fact this early tempering on the forge of the cold war was probably responsible for my becoming a paramedic, an Instructor for the American Red Cross, and a member of my county’s Civil Defense team. Admittedly a misspent youth, but one I am unapologetic for.
If you can’t trust us, whom can you trust?
Start small, if need be. Initiate a pilot program. Go to the flu forums and ask for volunteers. Pick the best dozen representatives you can find. We’re all on record; it wouldn’t take much to determine whom you can trust. Give them letters of introduction and some preparedness pamphlets and see what they can do in their communities.
You might be pleasantly surprised. It doesn’t always take a multi-million dollar advertising campaign to get the word out.
I get very little traction talking about pandemic flu in my community because I’m a private citizen, with no bona fides. As far as I can see, there is little or no pandemic preparation or awareness here, and no one wants to listen to a retired paramedic. I have no official standing, and so I am easily dismissed.
Legitimize our efforts, enable us to get our foot in the door, and you will have an army of hard-working, dedicated foot soldiers in the field.
Give us enough levers, even small ones, and we’ll help move the world for you.
It’s really as simple as that.
Community education, while vital, is just the beginning.
While there is much planning going on at the Federal and State levels, distressingly little appears to be happening at the community level. Most local governments are waiting for direction and funding from higher up, or are ignoring the problem altogether. Few communities have the budget to gear up for a pandemic, and so few are actively doing anything to prepare. Many, mistakenly still believe the State or Federal government will move in to handle any crisis.
To solve this impasse we need community volunteers, working in partnership with local governments, to prepare for a pandemic. We should be thinking along the lines of a State or Federally sanctioned Volunteer Pandemic Corps, where citizens can band together to help their communities solve local problems.
Once again, members of flu forums who have considered and discussed these issues could be major assets to these organizations.
How do we ensure the delivery of food and supplies to local communities? How do we distribute needed medicines to families? Who will check on the elderly, or infirmed, during a pandemic? What about single parents who are stricken by the virus? Who cares for them, or their children? What becomes of the 27 million Americans who live alone if they become ill? Who will step in to take over the jobs of fallen essential workers?
These are problems that will require local solutions, and yet are beyond the scope and capacity of most local governments. Somehow, we must find ways to deal with them.
It should be noted that those of us over the age of 40 may be particularly useful in a pandemic. This virus, much like the Spanish Flu of 1918, prefers young adults and children. Thus far, 90% of its victims have been under the age of 40. Baby boomers, such as myself, run less of a risk of infection or death than do younger people.
Since the goal of any rational society is to protect the next generation, some of us who are less vulnerable must ultimately step up and take on some of the risks during a pandemic. No, its not a pleasant thought. No one wants to go in harm’s way. But it is the responsible thing for us to do.
It is my hope we can create an army of graying volunteers, thin of hair, but not of spirit, to do those jobs during a pandemic we wouldn’t wish upon our children.
If a volunteer can drive a truck, check on a neighbor, hand out a flyer, join a neighborhood watch, work a telephone, tend to the sick, cook a meal, operate a Ham Radio, or watch the child of someone who is ill, they can be an essential relief worker.
You don’t have to put on a uniform, or wear a badge, to be a hero to your community. All you have to do is think like one. And act like one. Pretty soon, you’ll be one.
No, not everyone will volunteer to work during a pandemic. I understand that. Not everyone is suited for it. There are personal risks involved. It takes a special type of person, often one without family responsibilities, to undertake this sort of assignment in a crisis. But there are more of them out there than you know. You just have to ask them to come forth.
Officials are often loath to ask for help from the public. They see it as an admission of failure on their part. But the real failure would be in not asking, when the need is this obvious. They can’t handle a pandemic alone. They know it. We know it.
It’s time to reach for a solution.
Cynicism towards all levels of government runs rampant in our society. People, quite frankly, don’t trust the government. They feel disenfranchised, isolated, and patronized. The government correspondingly has grown wary of its own citizens. We’ve gotten to the point where we talk at each other, instead of to each other.
While it may sound idealistic, working together to fight a pandemic could help heal that rift.
Even if a pandemic doesn’t occur in the near-term, by working together on solutions, we would become a stronger, safer, and more unified nation. We’d be better prepared for the next earthquake, hurricane, or flood. And those are threats we know we will face.
Trust is a two-way street. If the government can show some faith in its citizens by asking for their help, citizens will naturally begin to trust the government more.
An unavoidable side effect, I suppose.
But it’s one, in time, I believe we could learn to live with.
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