COVID-19 has spawned this new SDOH
Court orders don’t end pandemics. But one federal judge’s action shows how government actions can affect SDOH (social determinant of health).
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Tag: COVID-19
Two years of COVID-19 emergency
Two years ago, to the date, a nationwide health emergency was declared by the president. It seems like a lifetime ago.
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800,000 souls lost to COVID-19
2021 was bookended by COVID. We started the year hoping that the pandemic would end and we could get back to some kind of normalcy. But, here we are. Not only does COVID remain at the forefront, with the Omicron variant it looks like the pandemic will continue to disrupt our lives well into 2022. People are tired of living their restricted life and with all the uncertainty. They want it to end. They want to return to normal, even if it’s a “new” normal. They question how much longer they can continue keeping their distance and wearing masks. Maybe they should ask their friends and family how they got through World War II. Oh yeah, the 1940s are now barely at the edge of living memory. How soon we forget.
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500,000 souls lost to COVID-19
The news today reported that half-a-million Americans have died from COVID-19. That’s more Americans dead from COVID-19 than died in WWI, WWII, and the Vietnam War put together. That’s enough dead to fill Arlington Cemetery. Perhaps if we keep talking about the dead in terms of numerical comparisons we don’t have to feel the pain and sadness of the pandemic. Perhaps if we focus on a headcount we don’t have to think about how our government failed to address the crisis. But every soul lost has left an empty spot behind on the hearts of all who knew them. No amount of counting will erase that.
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November 12, 2020 – #OzDSMS
12 hours later and so many thoughts are still swirling around in my head. ??: ???????? ?????? ?????-?? Communication failures added to the anxiety experienced by people with diabetes. Is it that diabetes puts us more at risk for contracting COVID-19 or is it that if we contract COVID we are greater risk of worse outcomes? (It’s the second one.) Do we really understand all those charts and graphs in the news? (Probably not.) Are we clear on what’s required locally in terms of mask wearing, what businesses are open or restricted, etc.? (It depends.) Also, could there be an upside to COVID-19 for people with diabetes? Not being able to go into the doctor’s office has changed the way we take care of ourselves. In some ways we can become more self-reliant. For instance, taking on self-checks of our feet. Also being in our own homes might just equalize
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Excerpt: Using Type 2 Diabetes Superpowers to Cope With the COVID-19 Pandemic
But, believe it or not, I’ve found a way to turn my experience managing diabetes into an advantage during this pandemic. Three practices in particular have helped me…
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