Has COVID-19 changed how people think about the drivers of health? If so, does it matter?

Background Could the COVID-19 pandemic prompt shifts in Americans' basic views on health mindset and policy solutions to health crises? Methods A sample of 1,637 individuals rated the extent to which items (e.g., the role of environmental vs. individual factors) "may affect people's health and wellbeing,” both before (2018) and during the pandemic. In summer 2020 and fall 2021 they responded to questions about vaccination status and perceptions of COVID-19 related policies. We assessed changes in health mindset using repeated measures logistic regression, and used cross-sectional logistic regressions to assess whether variations in mindset explain COVID-19 related attitudes and behavior. Results Between 2018 and 2021 respondents gave increasing weight to where people live and genetic factors and less weight to the role of individual health choices. Views on the importance of access to healthcare did not change appreciably. Those who reported that health care and place have a strong effect on health and wellbeing were significantly more likely to get vaccinated. Moreover, those who strongly believed that place is important were significantly less likely to agree that their local government went too far in restricting their freedom and that the local economy should have been left alone. Conclusion Respondents were more likely in 2021 than in 2018 to recognize social determinants of health, and this is associated with a greater openness to pandemic-control measures. It remains to be seen, however, whether the changes in health mindset will persist over time and contribute to changes in policy and practice.

Preparing for the Next Pandemic: Has COVID-19 Changed American Attitudes?

OBJECTIVE: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and future pandemics have become a reality, and planners must understand how attitudes during COVID-19 may influence future preparedness activities. This study explores how personal experiences of Americans during the pandemic, attitudes about institutions, and views of social change could either pose challenges or help with planning for the next pandemic. METHODS: A longitudinal survey capturing health attitudes and COVD-19-related experiences was fielded 3 times over the course of the pandemic among historically underserved individuals in US society (racial/ethnic minority and low-income populations). RESULTS: COVID-19-related experiences increased over time. Attitudes about federal and state government and businesses' ability to respond to the pandemic varied by COVID-19-related experience and having any COVID-19-related experience was associated with a lower likelihood of reporting positive attitudes about institutions. Respondents generally perceived that COVID-19 presented an opportunity for positive social change, and those with COVID-19-related experiences had the greatest likelihood of selecting "reduce income inequality" as their top prioritized change. Those with COVID-19-related experiences were less likely to endorse other policy priorities such as protecting freedoms. CONCLUSIONS: Anticipating potential backlash or other sentiments could improve pandemic responsiveness. Strengthening public institutions is crucial to ensuring their effectiveness during a pandemic. Pandemic planning could exploit opportunities to take other social policy actions where views seem to converge.

Has COVID-19 changed how people think about the drivers of health? If so, does it matter?

Background: Could the COVID-19 pandemic prompt shifts in Americans' basic views on health mindset and policy solutions to health crises? Methods: A sample of 1,637 individuals rated the extent to which items (e.g., the role of environmental vs. individual factors) "may affect people's health and wellbeing," both before (2018) and during the pandemic. In summer 2020 and fall 2021 they responded to questions about vaccination status and perceptions of COVID-19 related policies. We assessed changes in health mindset using repeated measures logistic regression, and used cross-sectional logistic regressions to assess whether variations in mindset explain COVID-19 related attitudes and behavior. Results: Between 2018 and 2021 respondents gave increasing weight to where people live and genetic factors and less weight to the role of individual health choices. Views on the importance of access to healthcare did not change appreciably. Those who reported that health care and place have a strong effect on health and wellbeing were significantly more likely to get vaccinated. Moreover, those who strongly believed that place is important were significantly less likely to agree that their local government went too far in restricting their freedom and that the local economy should have been left alone. Conclusion: Respondents were more likely in 2021 than in 2018 to recognize social determinants of health, and this is associated with a greater openness to pandemic-control measures. It remains to be seen, however, whether the changes in health mindset will persist over time and contribute to changes in policy and practice.

What drives health mindset and expectations in the United States?

Health mindset is a group of beliefs or assumptions that individuals hold about the causes of health and well-being. Strengthening our understanding of factors that shape mindset and how mindset shapes expectations for who can and should be responsible for health can inform the success and sustainability of solutions to current health crises including the COVID-19 pandemic, ongoing disparities in health outcomes, and gun violence. We first examined associations between personal characteristics and experiences with health mindset. Next, we examined the association between mindset and the belief that government involvement can help address pressing health questions, using obesity as an example of a health outcome that is shaped both by personal choices and factors outside one's control. Going forward, it will be important to consider health mindset in broader transformations of the health system and population approaches to improving health.

Technology and Data Implications for the Public Health Workforce.

Achieving a modern equity-oriented public health system requires the development of a public health workforce with the skills and competencies needed to generate findings and integrate knowledge using diverse data. Yet current workforce capabilities and infrastructure are misaligned with what is needed to harness both new and older forms of data and to translate them into information that is equity contextualized. As with other articles in this supplement, this article builds from a literature review, environmental scan, and deliberations from the National Commission to Transform Public Health Data Systems. The article summarizes some of the challenges around current workforce capabilities and pipeline. The article identifies where the technology and data sectors can contribute skills, expertise, and assets in support of innovative workforce models and augment the development of public health workforce competencies.