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A group of public health experts is looking to replace Dr. Leanna Wen as a panelist at the American Public Health Association’s November APHA Annual Meeting in Boston.
A research professor of health policy and management at George Washington University, Dr. Wen previously served as Baltimore City Health Commissioner and President of Planned Parenthood. She is scheduled to speak to APHA members about the “backlash” in public health at a panel on this theme. And she knows a bit about pushback: Dr. Wen, a frequent media commentator on Covid-19, has faced death threats and harassment for her views on masks, vaccines and more. Earlier this year, a Texas man pleaded guilty to shooting Dr. Wen after the feds Examination In this concern.
The man who said he would shoot Dr. Wen said he refused to take the “wonder drug,” meaning the covid-19 vaccine she advocates. Many of Dr. Wen’s critics have been vaccine skeptics, opponents of the mask mandate, and opponents of Covid-19. But a growing number of Dr. Wen’s critics strongly support stricter restrictions on Covid-19. And it is members of this latter group who are campaigning on Dr. Wen’s speech to address the ongoing threat of COVID-19, particularly harming certain groups.
“We ask our colleagues and colleagues in public health to reconsider and replace Dr. Wen whose work is consistent with anti-racist, anti-eugenicist public health practices and community health.” Petition Signed by hundreds of public health workers, researchers and scholars (mostly junior scholars and students).
In other words, Dr. Wen is now facing backlash from some in public health for his talk about backwardness in public health.
‘Scary Movement’
“Dr. Wen has been promoted in the news media and social media platforms Unscientific, Unsafe, It works, PhobicAnd Unethical Exercises during the Covid-19 pandemic,” the petition said. “For example, Dr. Wen proposed this in a recent article. Infection should be accepted such as ‘New normal. In another article, she writes how Lack of education is a threat to children From parents who want to keep their children safe; Although from 8/6/2022 1,376 children have died from Covid-19. She also supported it in another article.Hot wax sourceWhile still on the rise at Omicron – he suggests that municipalities remove all protections except vaccination. Her advice included both scientific and no-nonsense suggestions. Assigning a class of aircraft to wear a mask In response to airborne pathogens.
Dr. Wen’s statements “Opponent to and Reduce APHA members and colleagues have a hard time dealing with the fallout Her message“Some of them are physically disabled and/or immunocompromised and have suffered complex injuries,” the statement continued. “Indeed, instead of listening to those who are most vulnerable and most affected by her speech, Dr. Wen lived in celebrity. Disabled activists are banned And public Health Professionals on social media.”
Alleging that Dr. Wen was fired from Planned Parenthood due to internal disagreements (with Dr. Wen) regarding the group’s future. It is reported Because he wanted to focus on women’s health in general, especially on abortion, the petition was “she too”.Failure of leadership And Reluctance to address the political nature of abortion Aggravation of attacks on abortion As far as we see today,” he said. (The petition did not mention that one of Dr. Wen’s colleagues, former Mississippi state health officer Dr. Thomas Dobbs, was named in the United States Supreme Court’s Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization case, which led to this year’s reversal of Roe v. Wade; Dr. They have R. Dobbs. he said. (He was not involved, and the Mississippi case only bears his name because he was the head of the state agency that investigated the now-closed abortion clinic.)
In the year She is an emergency medicine physician by training, who received the 2016 AA Milton and Ruth Roemer Award. She has long written and spoken to news organizations about a variety of public health issues. The Washington Post. Although much of her commentary over the past few years has focused on Covid-19. And as the epidemic has slowed, Dr. Wen’s views have largely aligned with pandemic-related recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The CDC has been criticized by public health experts for its response to the pandemic, the agency’s director, Dr. Rochelle Walensky, recently acknowledged. Weaknesses Announcing a “beautiful” renovation. However, to the chagrin of many public health experts, the CDC employs many public health experts and scientists, and its recommendations cannot be considered fringe.
Still, some prominent experts publicly protested Dr. Wen’s speech and told APHA that they would be leaving the organization because of it. For example, Dr. Uche Blackstock, associate professor of emergency medicine at New York University; he said. He tweeted, “I have just canceled my APHA membership. It is illogical for APHA to give a platform to someone who has consistently minimized the harm caused by covid and certainly does not use a lens of fairness. (Dr. Blackstock A.P.A.) .F.A.A..Criticized by the founder of the Complex Systems Institute in New England.The World Health Network also he said. He tweeted that he was revoking his APHA membership “in this horrible move.”
David Swidler, a public health research scientist at the Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation, is a member of the group’s governing council and will have to attend this year’s AA meeting in person, but encouraged others to sign the petition. (He’s also publicly said he’s concerned about contributions that pay for Dr. Wen’s speaking fees, but Joe Bremner, an AA spokesman, said Dr. Wen is an invited panelist and is not paid to speak.) Swidler said. In higher ed “Throughout the pandemic, he has consistently taken neoliberal positions on Covid-19 security measures,” Dr Wen said. These positions consistently assumed personal responsibility that was not available to the general public.
“Healthy Discussion and Disagreement.”
Asked about the petition and other objections to Dr. Wen’s speech, APHA spokesman Bremner said in a written statement that Public Health “has a healthy history of discussion and disagreement.” Finding common ground in these conversations is how we move the needle to create healthier people in healthier communities. The letter, although inaccurate in some places, is another example of a clear argument for making the field difficult to discuss. (Bremner clarified that Dr. Wen was not the “keynote” speaker as the petition refers to her.)
Bremner continued, “We value robust debate about public health and support respectful and fact-based discussion. We appreciate the time and effort she and the other 7,000+ people who have taken the time and effort to share their work and experience speaking in scientific sessions at the APHA 2022 Annual Meeting.
He added, “In particular, Wen’s focus is on ‘Harassment, Bullying and Death Threats: Staying the Course in the Face of Violence.’ This is something that public health authorities across the country have had to deal with, especially in the last few years.
‘None of this is easy.’
Dr. Wen spoke to them. In higher ed On the back, however, she issued a written statement citing ongoing concerns about matters at hand, including her own personal safety.
“The panel I was invited to speak on, titled ‘Backlash,’ is intended to address issues in shaping public health policy,” said Dr. Wen. “It’s my understanding that panelists are chosen because we have experience dealing with conflict—for example, I’m talking about the complexities of navigating the challenges that come with my public relations experiences during Covid-19 and, before that, leading the Baltimore Health Department.
Public health professionals at the local, state, and federal levels “often work in challenging political environments.” These are the experiences that I and the other panelists hope to share with each other and those who choose to attend our meetings,” she said.
Asked how her public health guidelines changed during the outbreak, Dr. Wen said, “In the beginning, we had few tools at our disposal and little was known about this new, deadly virus.” The recommendations that I and other experts have made are generally very cautious and emphasize mitigation measures such as masks and distancing. Now is a very different time. There are highly effective vaccines and treatments that protect many Americans from serious illness, and more than 90 percent of the population has some level of immunity from vaccination or early exposure. Furthermore, scientists generally agree that Covid-19 is here to stay. So our strategy has to change to live with this disease.
Her current policy recommendations are: “They’re very different from 2021 or 2020,” Dr. Wen said. Community opinion has also changed on Covid-19, which should be taken into account when developing community recommendations.
“None of this is easy,” said Dr. Wen. “There is no one ‘right’ answer, because of the ups and downs of each intervention, as well as the cost of not following any course of action. These small conversations happen every day, and they are the kind of respectful, thoughtful discussions that I hope will happen at APHA and in other academic settings.
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