Nowadays we are living in a situation that happened before, in another time, with other complications: The Spanish flu. The focus of this essay is to explain some causes of the previous pandemic, stating that the three main causes of the Spanish flu were the lack of pandemic plans, censorship of news and the airborne secretions transmission.
One of the main causes of the Spanish flu has to do with the lack of plans. First of all, because the countries were not prepared for a pandemic, and secondly because they were not protocols to prevent the isolation of contaminated people, causing a massive spread that turned into a pandemic. Subsequently, it can be said that the absence of these pandemic plans caused the second wave of the Spanish flu.
The second main cause has to do with the censored news regarding the virus. Above all, war was in all media, and as well, the tension between the countries was high, avoiding the communication between each other. However, studies have shown that the news did imply a huge impact until one point and not through all the spread of the virus, as Spain was the first country to inform the situation. As it is mentioned: “Spain was neutral during World War I and unlike its European neighbors, it didn’t impose wartime censorship on its press” (Roos, 2020. For History Channel), demonstrating that the news were involved until Spain spread the message.
In addition, the third cause had to do with the transmitted airborne secretions. Firstly, because it was difficult to prevent, and secondly, because it promoted transmission in easier ways. A clear example and comparison can be with the Covid-19 situation in our present day; in which the only way to prevent the virus contagion is by using facemasks that avoid the spread of saliva: the main airborne secretion that contains the sickness.
As a conclusion, it can be observed that there are several reasons to state that three of the main causes of the Spanish flu were the lack of pandemic plans, censorship of news and the airborne secretions transmission.
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