It was impossible not to notice the arrival of a new virus this spring. The United States declared a public health emergency. The Mexican government closed schools, businesses, soccer pitches, and other public places. The Mexican army distributed truckloads of facemasks. Dozens of countries cut air links to Mexico, and quarantined feverish passengers returning from spring breaks and honeymoons. Facemasks started vanishing from Bay Area pharmacies just after the San Francisco Chronicle reported the outbreak. And as the World Health Organization (WHO) considered raising its alert level for the H1N1 influenza to that of a full-fledged pandemic — it was pressured to change its definition to include “substantial risk of harm to people,” in addition to distribution, to avoid reaching this potentially “alarming” level. Read more...

Photograph of Édgar Hernández of La Gloria, Mexico, described as the possible “index case” of the 2009 H1N1 influenza virus; New York Times April 28, 2009

People wore surgical masks on Monday in Mexico City; New York Times April 27, 2009

Charles L. Briggs and Mantini-Briggs returned to Delta Amacuro State in Venezuela in July of 2008 to use funds derived from Stories to collaborate with communities in developing innovative health policies and practices. But a conversation with indigenous leaders Conrado and Enrique Moraleda changed everything: “We are in the midst of an epidemic of an unknown disease.” They asked — practically ordered — us to drop what we were doing and work with them to document the situation, diagnose the disease, and take our findings directly to the national capital. They defined our involvement clearly — “we need you to work as an anthropologist, Dokomuru (Briggs’ Warao name), documenting narratives of these deaths, and you, Dr., as a physician, helping us find the cause of the epidemic.” Read more...

A young woman shortly before her death, with her mother; photo by Charles L. Briggs

Bereaved father in Santa Rosa, Delta Amacuro, Venezuela; photo by Charles L. Briggs

Confrontation between research team and employees in Ministry of Popular Power for Health, with New York Times reporter Simon Romero (right) and National Assembly representative Dalia Herminia Yanez (left); photo by Charles L Briggs

Team members plan investigation of epidemic; photo by Charles L. Briggs

Desmodus rotudus [vampire bat]

Eduardo L.Menéndez and Renée B.Di Pardo. (in press). Miedos, riesgos e inseguridades: El papel de los medios, los profesionales y los intelectuales en la construcción de la representación de la salud como catástrofe. [This is a book of 618 pages that has been presented to the editorial committee of CIESAS, and is currently in press.] Read more...