Category: Infectious disease

A patient’s COVID-19 reflections

In this age of the coronavirus pandemic, every moment of life takes on new meaning and importance. Decisions must be made based upon facts known, not assumed. Everything requires careful thought and planning, like a trip to the pharmacy for refills of …

How the pandemic affects children and teens with headaches and migraines

Children and teens with headaches and migraines have been affected in a variety of ways by these pandemic times. Thinking back, there has been a difference between last spring and this fall and the effect on my patients, particularly in the school envi…

COVID-19 is a time of coming to terms with meaning in our lives and tolerating uncertainty

Initially, after completing my master’s degree, I felt a bit lost. Being very busy, juggling different roles, focusing on areas of interest to the exclusion of other areas of life has long been my comfort zone. The stillness of having completed an inte…

Is COVID a turning point for sustainability in hospital supply chains? 

Scarcity has, in many ways, defined the COVID-19 experience in the U.S., from shortages in personal protective equipment to ICU ventilators and hospital capacity, to COVID test kits, to drugs like Remdesivir in hard-hit states. These shortages have add…

What it’s like to write about COVID-19 while it’s killing your mom [PODCAST]

“My mom was beyond vulnerable to the virus. May of 2020 marked two years since she’d become a nursing home resident—receiving care for several chronic illnesses. She died of failure to thrive due to Coronavirus 2019 on June 1, 2020, at the age of…

The importance of rehabilitation in COVID-19 patients

COVID-19, first diagnosed in China in December 2019, has since spread across the world and affected over 37 million individuals. While most people infected with COVID-19 experience mild to moderate illness and recovery without the need for hospitalizat…

The inconvenient truth: We need to learn how to live with COVID-19 and here’s how

Since the small cluster of cases broke out in Wuhan, China nine months ago, the world has profoundly changed. With each passing moment, there seems to be a new COVID-19 milestone. 1 million deaths worldwide. 215,000 deaths in the United States. A White…

What are the limitations of COVID-19 testing?

COVID-19, first identified in December 2019 and declared a global pandemic in March 2020, has taken a toll on everyone around the world. After months of varying levels of lockdown and quarantine, people are developing pandemic fatigue, and craving huma…

COVID-19 will kill 500,000 Americans. Here’s why.

Among the questions I’m asked most often as host of the podcast Coronavirus: The Truth are: “How have other nations effectively contained the pandemic?” and “Why can’t the United States copy their success?” For months, health experts have answered thes…

COVID-19 anosmia: Unmasking a new dark “twist”

A 4-day-old term, formula-fed male infant with an uncomplicated prenatal course and no ABO set up or other identified cause of excessive jaundice was admitted to the hospital for phototherapy treatment of hyperbilirubinemia with a peak bilirubin of 19….