Moderna’s stock price has continued to climb to record highs on the premise that their novel mRNA-based vaccine technology can take control of the spread of COVID-19. Since the beginning of January 2020 to the time of the writing of this article,…
Category: Infectious disease
COVID-19 hurts the people closest to you: How group identities affect disease transmission
They say you only hurt the ones you love. In the age of COVID-19, this adage has, almost ironically, attained a new shade of truth. One-on-one contact is definitely a risk factor—but so is what social scientists call “group identities.” Eve…
To wear a mask is to be brave. To trust your doctors is to be brave.
The pandemic is a lie. I will not wear someone else’s fear. This is all fake news. It is remarkable to see these statements littered across the news and social media. Individuals with a fairly decent level of understanding and intelligence pandering to…
A medical student’s unique education in a pandemic
“We will cease all remaining clerkships. Please thank your preceptors, collect your things, return home, and practice social distancing.” The email’s words were disappointing, but not surprising. Other medical schools had already pull…
Opening schools? The devil is in the details.
Concern There is no debate on the insurmountable value of kids needing to be in schools. CDC data shows that children account for 6% of COVID-19 cases and 0.2% of all deaths. Yet, the system can miserably fail if bullied into opening. Children could…
To all the mom-shamers out there: Let’s demand the collective support we, our children, and our society need
How I long for the good old days of mom-shaming. Back then, you could tsk-tsk over any number of maternal decisions: breastfeeding or bottle-feeding; having children out of wedlock or in wedlock with another woman; staying at home, or working full time…
Using plasma to fight COVID-19
We’ve gotten used to a life of restricted menu options during this pandemic, an analogy that extends all the way to our treatment if we contract COVID-19. But there’s an item still on the list at most medical institutions, and if it strikes…
Unethical policy: Resuming federal lethal injections during a global pandemic
The United States government has resumed capital punishment after a 17-year hiatus. Even setting aside questions of whether the death penalty is legal, ethical, or humane, the renewal of the practice of lethal injection poses some grave concerns, parti…
The withdrawal of effective sexual offender treatment during COVID-19
Public health safety measures in the wake of COVID-19 have transformed healthcare into virtual medicine overnight. From psychiatry to surgery, all of the medical specialties have adapted technology-enabled virtual appointments. The support for health…
What it’s like to write about COVID-19 while it’s killing your mom
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 …
