Signorelli Carlo, Fara Gaetano Maria
Professor of Public Health, University Vita-Salute San Raffaele Co-Chair, 16° World Congress of Public Health Section Editor, Acta Biomedica.
Emeritus Professor of Public Health, Sapienza University of Rome Guest Editor, Special Issues Road to Rome 2020.
Acta Biomed. 2020 Apr 7;91(3-S):7-8. doi: 10.23750/abm.v91i3-S.9507.
Public Health professionals and academics have been on the frontline of Italian history during the COVID-19 response like they never did before. Ancient professors of Hygiene such as Celli, Pagliani, Sclavo, Petragnani, Seppilli and Giovanardi flanked politicians in other critical moments. They helped them to manage healthcare reforms, earthquakes response, Seveso Dioxin disaster, cholera and poliomielitis epidemics and other health threats. The ongoing COVID-19 epidemic has highlighted the paramount importance of the practical application of basic concepts of public health, which were considered so far became obsolete, such as personal hygiene, quarantine, individual protective devices or basic epidemiological measures. Hygiene and Public Health used to have a targeted audience in professionals and lecturers. Nowadays, these topics are critical and of concern of a much larger audience. Public Health women and men are now asked to act in task forces, media broadcasts, webinars and consulting activities. In phase 2 of this epidemic - which is about to begin when this volume is to be published - the role of Public Health professionals could become even more relevant. However, this unexpected season must be managed with seriousness and intelligence, capitalizing it also for the future. If our Post-Graduate Schools of Public Health ("Igiene e Medicina Preventiva"), our scientific associations, our academic lecturers and our officers do not prove to be up to the situation, a dull future for the discipline might very well be. On the contrary, if as we all hope, we will be able to ride the wave of a dramatic health crisis, transforming it into a relevant scientific and professional opportunity, then we will be able to build on the post-COVID-19 a cutting-edge, a more attractive, relevant and modern discipline. This Supplement of Acta Biomedica, planned before the onset of the epidemic emergency in Italy, but already successful in presenting two papers on COVID-19, is further proof of how current and lively our discipline is.
在应对新冠疫情期间，公共卫生专业人员和学者站在了意大利历史的前沿，这是他们前所未有的经历。在其他关键时刻，像切利、帕利亚尼、斯克拉沃、佩特拉尼亚尼、塞皮利和乔瓦纳尔迪等古代卫生学教授曾辅佐政治家。他们协助政治家进行医疗改革、应对地震、处理塞韦索二噁英灾难、霍乱和脊髓灰质炎疫情以及其他健康威胁。 持续的新冠疫情凸显了公共卫生基本概念实际应用的至关重要性，这些概念迄今被认为已过时，如个人卫生、隔离、个人防护设备或基本流行病学措施。卫生学和公共卫生过去的目标受众是专业人员和讲师。如今，这些话题至关重要，受到了更广泛受众的关注。现在要求从事公共卫生工作的男女在特别工作组、媒体广播、网络研讨会和咨询活动中发挥作用。 在疫情的第二阶段——当本卷出版时即将开始——公共卫生专业人员的作用可能会变得更加重要。然而，必须认真且明智地应对这个意外时期，也要为未来从中汲取经验。如果我们的公共卫生研究生学院（“卫生学与预防医学”）、我们的科学协会、我们的学术讲师和我们的官员无法应对这种情况，那么该学科的前景可能会很黯淡。相反，如果正如我们所有人所希望的，我们能够驾驭这场严重的健康危机浪潮，将其转化为一个相关的科学和专业机会，那么我们将能够在新冠疫情之后建立一个前沿、更具吸引力、相关且现代的学科。《生物医学学报》的这份增刊在意大利疫情紧急情况爆发之前就已策划，但已经成功发表了两篇关于新冠疫情的论文，这进一步证明了我们学科的时效性和活力。
