Perhaps one of the greatest public health legacies to have emerged from the 14th-century plague pandemic is the concept of “quarantine”, from the Venetian term “quarantena” meaning forty days. The 14th century Black Death pandemic is thought to have catalyzed enormous societal, economic, artistic and cultural reforms in Medieval Europe. It illustrates how infectious disease pandemics can be major turning points in history, with lasting impacts. How Covid-19 will reshape our culture, and what unexpected influence it will have for generations to come is unknown. The HIV pandemic taught us about the value of a well-designed public health campaign and the importance of contact tracing.

Source: The North Africa Journal April 25, 2020 23:03 UTC