Federal Loneliness ‘Advisory’ Threatens To Destroy Private Life
We need to start understanding attacks on free speech as direct attacks on our ability to develop relationships with others.
thefederalist.com
>Surgeon General Vivek Murthy recently released an 81-page advisory titled “Our Epidemic of Loneliness and Isolation.”
>Its sprawling plan to address social isolation as a public health crisis includes substantial elements of surveillance, mandatory “diversity, equity, inclusion” (DEI) policies, and federal control of local infrastructure and organizations—all beckoning with love language about the need for more “caring” and outreach.
webarchive - https://archive.is/vH8fr
>Require data transparency
>Establish and implement safety standards
>Support development of pro-connection technologies
>The exponential growth of technology crosses geographic borders, broadening communities and opening the world to those with limited access. It has had a tangible impact on how we live and work, from social connectivity, gaming, content sharing, and virality, to flexible work environments and communication.
>But these benefits come at a cost. Technology can also distract us and occupy our mental bandwidth, make us feel worse about ourselves or our relationships, and diminish our ability to connect deeply with others. Some technology fans the flames of marginalization and discrimination, bullying, and other forms of severe social negativity.
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Ch 4, Pillar 5
Pillar 5
Deepen our Knowledge
• Develop and coordinate a national research agenda • Accelerate research funding
• Increase public awareness
This Surgeon General’s Advisory outlines a summary of the evidence about how social connection and disconnection impact individual and community health and overall well-being. The totality of this evidence illustrates that urgent action is needed, including additional research to further advance our understanding of the causes and consequences of social connection, trends, populations at risk, and the effectiveness of interventions and other efforts to advance connection.
As a next step, relevant stakeholders, including government, policymakers, practitioners, and researchers, should work together to establish a research agenda focused on addressing identified gaps in the evidence base, fund research at levels commensurate with the seriousness of the problem, and create a plan to increase research coordination. Deepening our knowledge of social connection and disconnection also requires us to further refine and expand our capacity
to measure these states via agreed upon standardized metrics. As individuals, communities, institutions, and governments implement the pillars of the National Strategy, consistent measurement will be critical to better understanding the driving forces of connection and disconnection, and how we can be more effective and efficient in addressing these states.
Public understanding of the essential role of social connection in health and well-being is critical to this pillar. Social connection should be included as a
key driver of health in formal health education, from elementary to professional school curricula. It is also imperative that we share this knowledge beyond health professionals. Public awareness and education of the drivers and solutions of connection and disconnection will be a critical foundation to support sustained policy and cultural change.
>Social connection is an independent protective factor, and social isolation and loneliness are independent risk factors for several major health conditions, including cardiovascular disease, dementia, depression, and premature mortality from all causes.128 While all organizations have a role in addressing social connection, mobilizing the health sector—most notably health care delivery systems and the public health community—is a core pillar of the National Strategy.
>It is critical that we invest in health care provider education on the physical and mental health benefits of social connection, as well as the risks associated with social disconnection. We must also create systems that enable and incentivize health care providers to educate patients as part of preventative care, assess for social disconnection, and respond to patients’ health-relevant social needs. This can be accomplished both within the medical system and by linking individuals to community-based organizations that can provide necessary support and resources specifically designed to increase social connection.
>Public health organizations can help track the community prevalence of social disconnection, promote individual best practices, and advance community solutions. By integrating social connection into primary-, secondary-, and tertiary-level prevention and care efforts, we can strive to prevent forms of social disconnection in healthy individuals, mitigate forms of social disconnection early on before they become severe, and provide adequate support for those who are experiencing severe forms of social disconnection.
