Key Points
Dealing with the periodic rise of viral and zoonotic diseases without shutting down and overburdening hospitals requires a strong primary healthcare system with the general practitioner (GP) at its centre..
Dealing with zoonotic (animal-to-human) diseases will require people to behave more responsibly, adhering to mask-wearing, washing hands and isolating when sick..
The most critical intervention is restoring GPs to their rightful place in the healthcare system..
Allowing people to access qualified and reliable medicare with ease and familiarity at neighbourhood clinics and local primary health centres ensures that only the more serious manifestations of ailments are referred to hospitals..
Building up and augmenting the primary healthcare system, and ensuring that these 'generalists' and not specialists are staffing it is central to preventing a healthcare crisis in the face of rising zoonotic diseases..
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