Philippine E-Journals

From Cholera to COVID-19: A Historical Review of Misinformation during Pandemics

Christian George F. Acevedo

 

Abstract:

The role of health literacy has never been more crucial, particularly at the height of a pandemic and annals in history are good reminders. The case of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) presents us a huge bulk of information to fight the spread of the virus, like staying at home, disinfection, hand washing, and maintaining physical distance (World Health Organization, 2020). Interestingly, this information is not new. At the turn of the 20th century, the Philippines was hit by two of the worst pandemics in history: the Asiatic cholera and the Spanish flu. Cases spread like wildfire and not a town in the archipelago was spared from disease and death. Health outbreaks spread easily in those days and were caused by poor health decisions, such as poor hygiene and misinformation. The American colonial government introduced health measures to prevent future health outbreaks and fight infodemic that deterred health reforms, especially in the grassroots. These lessons from the past remind us of the vital role of healthy literacy in saving lives.