Description

Pandemics, Politics, & Public Health provides a comprehensive review of the United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps in fulfilling its domestic and global mission. Several years were required to research a vast amount of documentation for this historical account. It revealed a fascinating story of personal and institutional resilience that allowed the Commissioned Corps to not only endure, but to advance through ongoing improvement and renewal. While the Corps is thematically central to the narrative, this history is presented within the context of public health more generally, as well it should. The narrative progresses chronologically, with each chapter beginning with the appointment of a Surgeon General. Surgeons General perform a key role as the operational head of the Corps and as the nation s doctor. PHS officers, however, are the people who give life and substance to the Commissioned Corps in their exceptional professional endeavors. In so doing, they have shown real officership by supporting one another as a team in fulfilling the PHS mission. While a historical account is unable to cover every person and event, the work of every PHS officer is contributory. We introduced a concept called In Their Words that are personal accounts of officers about their experiences while on active duty, thereby lending considerable interest to the narrative.