Description
Public health and social measures (PHSM) were used at an unprecedented scale to mitigate the COVID-19 pandemic. While the patchwork policies applied by national and subnational governments was often criticised as lacking coordination, the World Health Organisation (WHO) nonetheless exerted normative influence by endorsing and recommending certain policies. Recent World Health Organization (WHO) publications reflect an increased acknowledgement of PHSM as an essential element of pandemic prevention, preparedness and response (PPPR). This is also reflected in the expansion of PHSM-related core competencies in the revised International Health Regulations (IHR). Meanwhile, the WHO is developing a research agenda on PHSM effectiveness to inform future PPPR recommendations. In this article, the revised IHR are assessed alongside several recent WHO publications that give recommendations on the use of PHSM and compared against pre-COVID-19 documents. The analysis shows that although new evidence has not yet been systematically accounted for, recommendations have changed substantially. Interventions targeting infected individuals have been transformed to population-wide, “whole-of-society” measures, notably with respect to quarantine, face masks, and travel restrictions. This points to an evident normalization of PHSM applied during the COVID-19 pandemic despite meagre evidence for their effectiveness and increased recognition of immense collateral damage. A systematic evaluation of the effects of PHSM during the COVID-19 pandemic is imperative before revising changes in recommendations.
