My pleasure! I’m with you, I try to learn something new every day as well. We live in a fascinating time, where so much information is available so conveniently. It’d be a shame not to take advantage of that.
Thank you, Craig, for this important but heart-rending telling of a story that cuts to the heart of our modern Nation of Nations.
As an NS-born, PEI-raised Anglo, I had no idea this had happened so close, and how it mirrored and reinforced the Acadian expulsion (about which very little was taught in our history classes).
The nuns’ “zero disease, zero disability, and zero stigma” approach is one that we would do well to emulate further:
Whether it is HIV/AIDS (thankfully well-controlled here, but still epidemic & likely more so worldwide now that USAID has been shuttered);
the ongoing but all-but-ignored COVID pandemic/epidemic (& it’s immunosuppressive/destructive sequelae);
the potential for a deadly bird flu outbreak or pandemic; measles & whooping cough epidemics (not just -
anti-vaxx but again COVID-related);
or other preventable and treatable diseases;
we need as a society to regain trust in science, so that the afflicted provided with evidence-based care — both to treat their conditions, but also more self-servingly to enable them to be as productive citizens as they can be, and to reduce the overall burden on our already stretched healthcare systems & heroic personnel.
Case in point: our local hospital system — among the best in 🇨🇦 & within the major measles epidemic catchment area, and undergoing a measles outbreak in one of its ICUs — *still* does not require emergency patients, visitors (emergency & in-patient), or out-patients (including young children pediatric day surgery patients!) & their care providers to mask.
It is “encouraged”, but only less than optimally effective “baggy blue” surgical masks are available. Even the signage for handwashing remains up, but most of the hand sanitizer stations are not just unfilled, but the bottles have been removed.
I understand that the COVID pandemic has affected many people’s trust in science, but this kind of public health negligence is contributing to further mass-disabling infections.
If only we’d spent our limited resources on proactively cleaning air in public and congregant care spaces, we’d be spending far less than what we’re facing through disability directly, lost productivity, and other “hidden” costs.
So yes, let’s strive as a country for zero disease (as best as current science can achieve, using all the tools we have available), zero disability (to provide afflicted individuals with the best life possible), and zero stigma (including, crucially, against masking) — and let’s educate people about their duties to one another (masking, vaccinating, respecting public health guidance) and to combat the mis- & disinformation that is rampant.
Again, thank you for your important histories, as those who don’t understand them are doomed to repeat them.
Thank you for taking the time to leave such a thoughtful response to the story. I completely agree with what you said, and I really appreciate how you helped connect the issues in the Sheldrake Island leprosy lazaretto story to broader health-related challenges, both past and present.
I was the manager of a supported group living program for adults with developmental disabilities for 20 years, up until December 2023. During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, I became acutely aware of just how critical prevention really is. Something as basic as good hand hygiene made a huge difference. It prevented major illnesses and, I’m convinced, even saved lives. We supported several individuals who were immunocompromised or living with serious concurrent health conditions.
From my limited perspective, one reason people mistrust science is because it keeps evolving. During the pandemic, we would receive updated guidance, sometimes daily or even multiple times a day. We’d adapt, retrain, and adjust our practices accordingly. Still, I often heard comments like, “Well, that’s not what they said yesterday,” or “They keep changing the rules.”
When people are afraid, their trust is already fragile. Add to that the fear of doing something wrong, and it can quickly become overwhelming. Some people just shut down or give up altogether. If they don’t try, they can’t fail.
I have a lot of respect for people who think critically, ask questions, and genuinely want to understand. But I struggle with willful ignorance, especially when comfort is put ahead of safety, or when individual preferences come before community well-being. I truly believe that when we know better, we do better. That might be my Achilles’ heel, but it’s one of the core beliefs that drives me to tell the kinds of stories I choose to share from our history.
thanks for this, i learn something new everday...at least i try to!
My pleasure! I’m with you, I try to learn something new every day as well. We live in a fascinating time, where so much information is available so conveniently. It’d be a shame not to take advantage of that.
Thank you, Craig, for this important but heart-rending telling of a story that cuts to the heart of our modern Nation of Nations.
As an NS-born, PEI-raised Anglo, I had no idea this had happened so close, and how it mirrored and reinforced the Acadian expulsion (about which very little was taught in our history classes).
The nuns’ “zero disease, zero disability, and zero stigma” approach is one that we would do well to emulate further:
Whether it is HIV/AIDS (thankfully well-controlled here, but still epidemic & likely more so worldwide now that USAID has been shuttered);
the ongoing but all-but-ignored COVID pandemic/epidemic (& it’s immunosuppressive/destructive sequelae);
the potential for a deadly bird flu outbreak or pandemic; measles & whooping cough epidemics (not just -
anti-vaxx but again COVID-related);
or other preventable and treatable diseases;
we need as a society to regain trust in science, so that the afflicted provided with evidence-based care — both to treat their conditions, but also more self-servingly to enable them to be as productive citizens as they can be, and to reduce the overall burden on our already stretched healthcare systems & heroic personnel.
Case in point: our local hospital system — among the best in 🇨🇦 & within the major measles epidemic catchment area, and undergoing a measles outbreak in one of its ICUs — *still* does not require emergency patients, visitors (emergency & in-patient), or out-patients (including young children pediatric day surgery patients!) & their care providers to mask.
It is “encouraged”, but only less than optimally effective “baggy blue” surgical masks are available. Even the signage for handwashing remains up, but most of the hand sanitizer stations are not just unfilled, but the bottles have been removed.
I understand that the COVID pandemic has affected many people’s trust in science, but this kind of public health negligence is contributing to further mass-disabling infections.
If only we’d spent our limited resources on proactively cleaning air in public and congregant care spaces, we’d be spending far less than what we’re facing through disability directly, lost productivity, and other “hidden” costs.
So yes, let’s strive as a country for zero disease (as best as current science can achieve, using all the tools we have available), zero disability (to provide afflicted individuals with the best life possible), and zero stigma (including, crucially, against masking) — and let’s educate people about their duties to one another (masking, vaccinating, respecting public health guidance) and to combat the mis- & disinformation that is rampant.
Again, thank you for your important histories, as those who don’t understand them are doomed to repeat them.
🙏😷💉
❤️🇨🇦
Elbows up!
💪💪
Thank you for taking the time to leave such a thoughtful response to the story. I completely agree with what you said, and I really appreciate how you helped connect the issues in the Sheldrake Island leprosy lazaretto story to broader health-related challenges, both past and present.
I was the manager of a supported group living program for adults with developmental disabilities for 20 years, up until December 2023. During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, I became acutely aware of just how critical prevention really is. Something as basic as good hand hygiene made a huge difference. It prevented major illnesses and, I’m convinced, even saved lives. We supported several individuals who were immunocompromised or living with serious concurrent health conditions.
From my limited perspective, one reason people mistrust science is because it keeps evolving. During the pandemic, we would receive updated guidance, sometimes daily or even multiple times a day. We’d adapt, retrain, and adjust our practices accordingly. Still, I often heard comments like, “Well, that’s not what they said yesterday,” or “They keep changing the rules.”
When people are afraid, their trust is already fragile. Add to that the fear of doing something wrong, and it can quickly become overwhelming. Some people just shut down or give up altogether. If they don’t try, they can’t fail.
I have a lot of respect for people who think critically, ask questions, and genuinely want to understand. But I struggle with willful ignorance, especially when comfort is put ahead of safety, or when individual preferences come before community well-being. I truly believe that when we know better, we do better. That might be my Achilles’ heel, but it’s one of the core beliefs that drives me to tell the kinds of stories I choose to share from our history.
When we know better, we do better.
That’s pretty much my thesis for this post … how we evolved minds & consciousness, and how science extends the limits of evolved minds.
https://open.substack.com/pub/digitalcanary/p/on-minds-imperfection-and-the-role
Be well, and keep educating Craig — it’s important work!
This was incredible, thanks for sharing.