SANITARY MODELS AND POLITICAL RESPONSE TO THE “SPANISH FLU”. PERU 1918–1919

Zevallos A.R. · Dialogo Andino (2023) · DOI: 10.4067/s0719-26812023000300133

Resumen

The article deals with the “Spanish flu” pandemic in Peru, focusing on the clash of two health models: one hegemonic, which fought the pandemic through isolation, control and repression of the population; the other, a medical-social reformist model that, with a broader approach, included the social and economic condition of the people as a causal factor of the disease, which led to the proposal of a comprehensive reform that would guarantee the health of the majority of the population. The article has five parts. In the first, we specify the level of prominence achieved by physicians at the beginning of the 20th century. In the second, we present the epidemiological theories in dispute and their application to understanding and combating influenza. In the third part, we present the conflict between sanitary models -and their links with the disputed theories- before and during the development of the “Spanish flu”. In the fourth part, we describe the actions taken by the political authorities and the discussion they generated. Finally, we analyze the political and social conflict as a battle for meaning in which the contenders disregard the problem of health, which was not favorable to the reforming physicians who wielded a model centered on social-medicine. © (2023), (Universidad de Tarapaca). All rights reserved.

Instituciones: Universidad Nacional Federico Villarreal