International Working Group for Health Systems Strengthening

The Unprecedented Times

We have all been told that we are living in unprecedented times during the COVID-19 pandemic. But what exactly makes these times unprecedented? In 1918, a strain of H1N1 influenza also took the world by storm. In the past decade we have seen outbreaks of Ebola in West Africa. Polio, Malaria, SARS, and an entire host of other infectious diseases have also taken their place in history. It seems like the very nature of time requires that its passage, by nature, be unprecedented. As young public health leaders, the members of the IWG have reflected on their experiences in 2020 and expressed their hopes for the future of public health. Year to year the velocity of change increases, leading to amazing breakthroughs in science and society, but also forcing every person to prepare themselves for constant change. We may highlight now that the current times are unprecedented, but they always have been and always will be, and we as public health professionals are ready to embrace change.