The Covid 19 pandemic has revealed many wrongful aspects of our societies. We tend to concentrate on the disparity of wealth, social order and race relations.
One positive aspect that stands out is the emergence of women leaders at the National and Provincial levels.
Forbes had an article
What Do Countries With The Best Coronavirus Responses Have In Common? Women Leaders
The best PUBLIC HEALTH officials around the world also have been women, whether at a provincial level like Dr Bonnie Henry in British Columbia or national level like Dr Tam in Canada. The tendency is world wide, the best results in India with its catastrophic Covid 19 pandemic, has been from Kerala, where a woman leads the Health Department.
I have always believed that women has the character best suited for health care providers, the caring nature being one of them
Here is a summary of an article about Dr Bonnie Henry, the Chief Public Health officer i BC Canada.
A former Navy physician, Dr. Henry has been lauded for her intelligence and strength, but also for her classically female leadership traits — humility, collaboration, empathy and emotion. In perhaps her most celebrated press briefing, she teared up after announcing the virus had broken out in long-term care homes.
“This is our time to be kind,” she said in her slow and low-pitched voice that many call comforting, “to be calm and to be safe.”
It was while working for the World Health Organization tracing Ebola outbreaks in Uganda that Dr. Henry developed her ideas about how best to respond to public health emergencies. The keys to an effective quarantine, she came to understand, were communication and support, like food and medical follow-up, not punitive measures.
(Murals of Dr TAM and Dr Henry in Vancouver, BC, Canada)
“If you tell people what they need to do and why, and give them the means to do it, most people will do what you need,” she said.
I clearly remember a meeting of the leaders of American Indian health in Phoenix, Arizona. The Epidemiologists, the troubadours of tragedy had announced the impending gloom of Diabetes on native population.
A leader from Lakota nation, Ms John, I think her name was, got up and said :
We are sick and tired of you telling us how sick we are, it would be helpful if you could give us means to fight this epidemic. and in my reservation, she continued, giving us JOB opportunities we would begin to cut down on this epidemic of Diabetes.
To echo that sentiment, I have noted that financially independent tribal nations have fared well during the current covid 19 epidemic in the USA.
Hats off to the world leaders who have saved millions of their fellow citizens and the hundreds of women public health leaders who think of the welfare of their fellow citizens.
I admire each and every one of you and particularly admire Jacinda from our part of the world, Australasia. I fondly pay respects to Golda Meier, Israel ; Mrs Bandaranaike of Sri Lanka, Indira Gandhi of India, Ms Bhutto of Pakistan, Sheikh Hasina of Bangladesh, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf of Liberia, Park Gyen-Hye of South Korea, Julia Guillard of Australia, Violeta Chamorro of NIcaragua, Michelle Bachelet of Chile, Teresa May of UK among many of the beneficial leaders.
MS Shailaja, Communist Party of Kerala
The coronavirus slayer! How Kerala's rock star health minister helped save it from Covid-19
In contrast, both populist presidents, Trump of USA and Bolsanaro of Brazil with very bad Covid 19 management credentials have appointed MILITARY men to oversee the Corona Virus epidemics in their countries.
Castigation does not work, the populists including Boris Johnson of UK and Poutin of Russia (both not doing too well with the Pandemic) should take note from Dr Bonnie Henry of BC:
“If you tell people what they need to do and why, and give them the means to do it, most people will do what you need,”
M
