Kamran Abassi's (Editor, BMJ) comments are often insightful. Extracts below and a comment from me. Read online: https://www.bmj.com/content/390/bmj.r1863
'To put it simply, if I need brain surgery I’d prefer any harm to be in the hands of an expert surgeon rather than an enthusiastic barber. If my government has created systems to approve new drugs and recommend vaccines I’d prefer any related harms to be judged by expert scientists rather than hubristic ideologues (doi:10.1136/bmj.r1824). Expert in this sense means somebody who understands the evidence, is capable of making evidence informed decisions that balance benefits and harms, and possesses the necessary experience...
'However, Kennedy has flipped this concept on its head. His attacks — and those of the Trump regime and others with political, personal, or commercial agenda — seek to belittle and disempower genuine experts... and elevate voices that align with the dominant political agenda...'
COMMENT (NPW): Every aspect of health care, from a mother's decision about what to do when her child has diarrhoea (give more fluids or less?) through to specialist surgery in a tertiary hospital, is dependent on the integrity of the global evidence ecosystem [ https://www.hifa.org/about-hifa ]. This in turn is dependent on people understanding and strengthening the global evidence ecosystem. The current US Administration's actions are doing the opposite: they ignore, undermine and weaken the system - not only in the US but globally.
HIFA profile: Neil Pakenham-Walsh is coordinator of HIFA (Healthcare Information For All), a global health community that brings all stakeholders together around the shared goal of universal access to reliable healthcare information. HIFA has 20,000 members in 180 countries, interacting in four languages and representing all parts of the global evidence ecosystem. HIFA is administered by Global Healthcare Information Network, a UK-based nonprofit in official relations with the World Health Organization. Email: neil@hifa.org