COVID-19 in Brazil: tragedy, social inequality, denial of science, suffering and preventable deaths
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17267/2317-3394rpds.v10i3.3595Keywords:
COVID-19, Pandemic, CoronavirusAbstract
INTRODUCTION: COVID-19 was declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization on March 11th, 2020. A defining characteristic of the crisis in Brazil was the lack of a national plan to combat COVID-19, a situation aggravated by the denial of science and the proliferation of fake news. OBJECTIVE: Discuss whether the lack of coordination on the federal level informed by a focus on the World Health Organization guidelines, the denial of science, and social inequality, are factors that contributed to the exacerbation of the crisis and an increased number of victims. METHODOLOGY: As this is an essay, the study was carried out based on bibliographic research that prioritized the initial publications of the year 2020, during the period of the pandemic, including documents from the Pan American Health Organization (OPAS), and from the OMS. Based off these sources, it was possible to make reflections and interpretations about the crisis in Brazil. CONCLUSION: Based on the analysis of publications about the pandemic, it is possible to theorize that the lack of a government-led initiative based on science to combat covid-19, as well as negationism, fake news, and social inequality, may have contributed to the increased number of cases, loss of human life, and suffering of the population. With this it can be asserted that the response to the pandemic must be scientifically based, and must include the implementing of measures in the areas of health, economics and human rights to mitigate the effects of this tragedy.
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