I am increasingly frustrated. The fear surrounding Covid-19 affects my income directly even if I’M not afraid. Shut down orders and similar also affect me. I can blame partisan politics in the US but this seems to be worldwide. I check BBC, NHK, and der Spiegal regularly.
Why are equally qualified doctors on opposite sides about so much of this? HCQ, masks, distancing, shutdowns; there are qualified medical experts saying opposing things. I don’t believe in scientific consensus, history has shown that the consensus is often completely wrong so numbers of experts don’t impress me.
I’m frustrated by the politicization of medicine and health. I trust MY doctor but can I trust the people informing her? I’ve already seen government interference in my healthcare (Medicare often overrides my doctor’s recommendations).
When a treatment or vaccine comes out, how will I know if it’s good? How can I tell my students “do this to be safe” if *I* can’t be sure? The news isn’t trustworthy, if only because they’re unqualified to judge science. Where should I look for trustworthy information?
I hesitate to become involved here. CWbullet, please feel free to correct me, or just delete the whole post.
I suspect what we are seeing here is the layman's reaction to the scientific method in action. And much of the scientific method was corrupted by bad data in the beginning of the crisis.
When the people in the medical research community are presented with a problem of this magnitude, they fall back on past practice and the best information that is available at the time. If that initial information is false, that confuses the process and causes mid course corrections when the true data starts to drive the research.
The scientific method take time, but we (modern society) are used to science having all the answers, NOW!
This is compounded by "Talking heads" on the 24 hour news services making broad statements, many times with no background in the area and using non proven theory's. Add in the fact that all the 24 hour news services need "content" and viewers and it becomes easy to see how things spiral out of control in the publics view.
Now add in all the social media "experts" who can, and do, say anything they want just to get clicks. None of which are ever fact checked, but are shared at literally the speed of light.
Again. The scientific method takes time. Vetting drugs takes time. Developing treatment protocols takes time.
The facts as I see them now:
There is a global pandemic COVID-19
It started in China in 2019
It is more infectious than the flu, but not as infectious as Ebola.
It is more deadly than the flu, but not nearly as deadly as Ebola.
There appears to be long lasting implications from infection, even in some who don't show symptoms.
There appears to be no evidence that this was a created bio-weapon
Treatment's are evolving and improving.
A few vacancies are in trials that appear to show promise.
Guidelines/ policies/ procedures will continue to evolve as we learn more.
EDIT:
One last thing Consensus has no place in the scientific method. Repeatable data drives it.