Public deliberation in the context of the response to the COVID-19 pandemic: an analysis of the early response in Colombia

Abstract

Deliberation is desirable in the public health field, even in emergency scenarios, where decisions must  be made quickly and with a high uncertainty degree.  An analysis of the decision-making process in the first  months of the COVID-19 pandemic in Colombia and  in the months around the start of vaccination was carried out, considering the concept of public  deliberation and with emphasis on the decisions of  the National Government related to the health sector.  A qualitative study of content analysis was carried out, using as information source the documents from the  web pages of the Presidency of the Republic of  Colombia, the Ministry of Health, and the Congress of  the Republic and pages of social organizations,  particularly representative of the vulnerable  population and non-governmental organizations  (NGOs). The deliberative spaces for decision-making  related to the health sector during the pandemic in  Colombia were limited to formal settings where the  participation of biomedical experts and technicians  from central government entities was privileged. It is  necessary to include scenarios with a greater capacity  for public deliberation in future preparedness plans  for this type of emergency.