Public health workers have faced at least 1,499 cases of workplace harassment stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a new study.
Published last week by the American Public Health Association, the study compiled its tally of workplace harassment against health care professionals by combining “media content and a national survey of local health departments in the United States.”
The driving force behind the increase in harassment during the pandemic, the study concludes, was the hyperpoliticization of how best to slow the spread of COVID-19. That ensuing cultural divide made targets of health care workers.
“During the COVID-19 pandemic and other co-occurring public health challenges, public health officials described experiencing threats and