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COVID-19
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2021-04-17
13-year-old in Pfizer Covid vaccine trial who wants to be an epidemiologist: ‘I like to learn everything I can’
Recently CNBC has released an article on my story in the Pfizer Vaccine Trial. I got interviewed about a week ago, and I helped in the making of the article. It is on a division of CNBC called CNBC Make It. CNBC Make It is a section of CNBC that specializes in money, wellness, and heartwarming stories. I have gotten to know the writer, Cory Stieg, well and it was great working with her. The article goes into detail about how the trial works and my experience with the trial. This experience has been amazing from both ends, Pfizer and CNBC. I hope that I inspired others to make a change in the world and to try and pursue your passions. Link to article in description -
2021-05-07T10:15
Personal Pandemic History of Erin Holley
I decided to share her story because we wrote a paper in school that I thought was good. -
2021-05-21
Personal Pandemic History Project Of Jaisey Rindlisbacher
This is about the COVID-19 pandemic. It shares my moms personal experience, and it is important to me because I spent a ton of time on it. Also because this was one of our final projects in school. -
2021-05-01
INDIA DYING
This is a breakdown of facts and my opinions on the India Coronavirus situation. -
2021-05-15
Getting My Vaccine!
I got my Pfizer vaccine! It's actually surreal to me to think that I got a vaccine because I was quite pessimistic about Covid in 2020. I think there was a voice in my head telling me that we're going to be in “this” for so long, and that it's going to be so bad but when I wrote my second Coronavirus journal entry, I said “I think we might get a vaccine by 2021 but I don't think it will be distributed to the public quickly until mid 2021” and I hit it right on the nail with that. I guess my prediction was pretty lucky. The progress that the United States has made with vaccines has been outstanding to be honest. I think it might be regarded as one of the most successful events in modern US history. A couple months back it was crazy for me to see that juniors in my French class we're being taken out to get the vaccine. At the time I was hearing about how Canada was lagging behind in vaccines. Even more crazy to me is that this Friday, my school opened up the gym for students 12-15 years old to get vaccinated so students in my grade got vaccinated at PE. Interestingly enough a classmate of mine was in the trial for under 15 year old kids. I'm sure that he documented his experience, but my experience with him being in the trial was that we teased him in Science class after he got his first dose. We said “oh you got the microchip” and “I bet your cellular connectivity got better”. He of course laughed it off. A lot of my humor is sarcasm, irony, and pretending to be dumb so when I said “oh you got the microchip” and “I bet your cellular connectivity got better”, it was meant (and taken) as a joke. But of course in humor, lies some truth. There are people that believe those things. There are people that are believing this misinformation from the internet. There are “Karen's” on the internet saying stupid things. There have been campaigns to fight misinformation about the vaccine and I think they've been successful, but there will always be dumb people. I think there are some famous people that are not using their influence for good, which is terrible as I think they have an obligation to support the vaccine. Someone I think that embodies this is LeBron James. I don't think he's gotten enough blow back for his comments. He is one of the most influential people in the world and his comments are damaging. His comments could indirectly be killing people. There is also some irony in his actions and his comments. It's well-known that he spends over 1.5 million dollars a year to keep his body in Tip-Top shape but he won't take a free vaccine. Anyways my experience getting the vaccine was pretty standard. I went into the hospital at 10:30, got my vaccine card (and an extra to archive), got pricked (it didn’t even hurt), waited 15 minutes and went home. Now 2 hours after I'm writing this, I haven't had any side effects other than some pain in the arm that I got it in. My dad got some bad side effects after his first dose, but not after his second, which seems to be odd because most people get worse side effects after the second dose. I’ll have to see if I get bad side effects from the first or second dose. Also if you’re reading this 50 years from now, check out if they have my vaccine card. -
2021-02-07
An Interview On 2020
Me: Could you give me a brief overview of your experience with COVID? Interviewee: Uh yeah, I mean, I guess I just experienced the same thing that every, you know, United States high-schooler experienced, it was just a random Friday in the middle of March and we went home and from there I've spent, I guess a month and a half in quarantine, you know, strict quarantine. And then of course I've been distancing from friends since then. Me: Do you remember your thoughts at the beginning of the pandemic and even prior to the pandemic and hearing news about it? Interviewee: Yeah. I mean, hearing news about it, you always think, Oh, that's, half a world away, what difference does it make? But I think when it started to set in for me was when there was a document released saying that the United States was statistically about seven days behind Italy in terms of contracting the virus and the virus's effects. And I remember there was this one week in Italy where their grocery stores were completely sold out, even the pasta which when you're looking in the United States, it actually did happen, I think a little bit on a smaller scale, but it definitely, in terms of toilet paper and paper towels, those were out of stock along with a lot of other necessities and cleaning supplies. So I would say those were my first thoughts. Me: What did you find to be the hardest part about the quarantining experience? Interviewee: I mean, I think there's just a sense of loneliness. I was at my previous school because I just transitioned to another school for high school and I kind of felt cheated out of those last few months of summer with my friends back at home and now I've been cheated out of all of winter term staying here at home. So in that sense, I've just felt a lot of frustration, but then also like a lot of loneliness in terms of quarantining. Me: Yeah. I think I understand that. Were you optimistic for 2020, at the beginning of the year? Did you have high hopes for the year? Did you say this is going to be Eleanor's year? Interviewee: Um no. I kind of find that whole thing cringy. I hate new year's resolutions personally, just because statistically the majority of people do not stay with them. I set goals every new year, but I don't really think of them as resolutions because, what am I resolving a part of my identity or something like? I don't really believe in that. So I wouldn't say I had high hopes for 2020, but I would say I had a lot of goals specifically in terms of my education and personal/social lives that were not able to come into fruition because of the virus. Me: Hmm. Are you optimistic for 2021? Knock on wood. Interviewee: Yeah, no. I'd say the same thing of course, going into the year it is like “Oh, new year, clean slate”, and then, you know, in the political world, there's so much going on too, especially with the violence at the Capitol and the inauguration. So I think in general, it's hard to have hopes for your 2021 but I think that it's always important to look at the good news. And you know, if you look at it, right, the vaccine is coming out. We had a pretty peaceful inauguration, so stuff like that, I think there are things to be hopeful for and to look forward to. Me: Do you think some people believe that everything was going to miraculously, you know, clear up at the beginning of 2021? Interviewee: I don't think anyone genuinely believed that, you know, I think if someone were to sit down and really think, or not even really think halfway think they would kind of realize that this virus isn't going anywhere the second it turns from 2020 to 2021. I think people have a lot of hope for 2021, as we should. But I don't think that anyone truly believes that the new year would make everything perfect. Me: Yeah. How do you think 2020 compares to other years of your life? Interviewee: Um I think it had, it ties in highs and lows like every year. For me the virus, I was fortunate that it didn't impact a lot of my life, my personal life. I don't have family members who have contracted the virus. But in my personal/social and educational lives, I would say a lot has changed. So I think the virus was responsible for a lot of that. Me: I know you're pretty experienced with online schooling through Zoom and other various platforms. What were your thoughts on that? Interviewee: Um it's awful cause I think the biggest thing about school is you have little interactions with people throughout the day and even with the teachers. For me, I work really well in visual and auditory learning, which of course through zoom and online platforms, you have auditory learning, but the visual component is a lot harder. And you just, a lot of times you don't have that same one-on-one interaction. And even if you go to conference periods or set up one-on-one meetings with your teachers, it's just not the same feeling. And unless you deliberately set aside time in your day to connect with your peers and to maintain and build upon those friendships, it's so easy to lose them online. Me: How do you think this year will be taught in history books and to the students of the future? Interviewee: Poor kids in 2050. Me: Remember that the me-me I saw of kids learning about 2020 in the future. Interviewee: Um yeah, I've seen a lot of Memes, Me: You mean Me-mes? Interviewee: Yes. Suuuure. Okay. But anyways, I feel like kids will have maybe a better understanding of the impacts of the virus because there is so much documentation on it. I feel like for us, if you're looking back in history, maybe one of the biggest things that every single person in the world learns about I would say it's probably World War II, right? That's something that, you know, you ask any kid already age, they probably have some sort of idea of what world war two was hopefully. So I feel like in that sense, the virus will go down as one of those things. And I think for us, World War II has some sort of impact because it was our grandparents who were fighting in the war and you know, Whereas I feel like future generations might feel a little bit more separation from World War II, however, I think that they might experience the same feelings of coronavirus as we feel about World War II, if that makes any sense. Me: Do you think you'll be telling kids of the future that you had to quarantine for 18 months straight and couldn't see light and couldn't talk to anyone? Interviewee: Totally. I turned into a vampire too. -
2021-04-17
13-year-old in Pfizer Covid vaccine trial who wants to be an epidemiologist: ‘I like to learn everything I can
Recently CNBC has released an article on my story in the Pfizer Vaccine Trial. I got interviewed about a week ago, and I helped in the making of the article. It is on a division of CNBC called CNBC Make It. CNBC Make It is a section of CNBC that specializes in money, wellness, and heartwarming stories. I have gotten to know the writer, Cory Stieg, well and it was great working with her. The article goes into detail about how the trial works and my experience with the trial. This experience has been amazing from both ends, Pfizer and CNBC. I hope that I inspired others to make a change in the world and to try and pursue your passions. Link to Article in Description -
2020-04-09
Covid-19
As my primary source I decided to choose a picture from the NY Daily News, and it was published on Apr 09, 2020 at 1:17 pm by Gardiner Anderson. I selected this picture, because in my opinion it has the ability to show how badly the Corona virus affected New York city and the entire world. This image documents how there were so many people dying from the Covid-19 virus and how there was not enough space in the morgue to keep the bodies. The situation was so horrible that people were dying alone in the hospitals without their family members in their bed side. Let’s stop for a minute and think how difficult it is to know your family member is in the hospital dying alone, and you cannot go to the hospital and hold their hand for them not to feel alone while they take their last breath. This was never seen before, at least not in the United States. Historians will have the chance to see how Covid-19 did not just affect the economical part of my community and the entire world, but how it also affected the people in a psychological level. While a lot of people was died during Covid- 19. A lot of people lost their jobs, and they did not have money to buy food. Also, a lot of people did not have money to pay their rental or bills. While this people were going through a financial crisis, maybe member of their family was in the morgue or hospital or maybe they were in quarantine because they had Covid-19. What it means for this picture to be in the newspapers is how big was the impact of Covid-19. It shows how bad the situation was at the moment. Millions of hospitals did not have space in the morgue. Therefore, it connects to the picture because it shows how they had to deposit the corpses in the refrigerated trucks. I selected this source because I want historians of the future to understand what was going on at the time. The readers are going have the chance to see with their own eyes what was going on at the time. They can see how horrible the virus was. In other words, this picture will explain and demonstrate what was going on at the time. For me to see this image during the pandemic was very hard and traumatizing because I felt so bad to see how they deposited corpses in the trucks. When I saw this image, I thought about my father and my friend because they had Covid-19, and they were in the hospital. I was nervous because I did not know what was going on with them if they were going to die or survive. At the same time, I was nervous because the economy was falling, and my family and others were being affected. My family was forced to reduce the amount of food we were eating. While my father and friend were at the hospital and my sister and brother were not working. Just my mother and me were working. We needed to pay the rent, buy food, and pay bills while my sister and brother were waiting for unemployment. My mother and I were forced to continue working during the pandemic to support our family. Every time I went to work, I was extremely scared about getting the virus and getting my family sick, especially my sister was pregnant at the moment. In the other hand I was worried about my father and friend who were fighting to survive Covid-19. Sadly, my friend died, but my father survived, and I am grateful he was able to survive this horrible virus. I just do not want to focus on how my family was affected, but how this virus affected the entire world. A lot of people died, some people did not have enough money and were waiting for unemployment, other were not even able to get unemployment and other people were not able to visit their family members who were sick in the hospital. This pandemic was catastrophic. -
2021-05-18
Changes during the pandemic
I chose this photo because of the differences between a before and after the pandemic. I took the first photo from Google, from an article titled "What Keeps People Coming Back to a Restaurant?" (Carol Lin Vieira) because I do not have an old one where access to eat was allowed, since for me it was common. The second photo was taken at my current job, it is located at 2065 Jerome Ave, Bronx, NY 10453. Before the pandemic started, we could go out and share with our families and friends, we could order food and eat in the restaurant, hang out, have fun and laugh, no need to be making reservations all the time. The pandemic changed our lives in a whole new way. Before we could be in groups and go to the park without the need to worry about whether other people could infect us. We had so much more fun because we didn't have to worry about whether restaurants would be open or not, whether we could go out and eat quietly away from home. During the pandemic, we can no longer do these kinds of things because we are separated. This is something sad, not being able to see your friends or family for fear of infecting us or infecting the people we love. Not being able to shake hands, give hugs, kisses on the face or share our food with other people. It makes me nostalgic to see how in my work the tables are empty and it is forbidden to eat, to remember how the restaurant was full with many people who laughed and told how their day, shared stories or dated someone. It is hard to listen to the sad voices of the customers when they ask when they can go eat. As I mentioned earlier, COVID-19 left many losses and many broken hearts along the way, it is a disease in which it showed us the value that each person has. Sometimes as teenagers we do not realize what we have, I chose this photo as an example of how little we valued the little things before and now we really need it. A single walk without a mask, sitting in large groups with your family in a restaurant, being next to someone who has already died due to this disease, among many other details. I think everything happens for a reason and from something so negative we learned something positive, we learned to appreciate the little things in life, to be more united with the family and to love more every day. -
2020-04-12
One Way to See Family During a Worldwide Crisis
Primary Source Essay Wildania Hernandez The primary source I’m using for this project is a picture of my family on a zoom call celebrating my father’s birthday on march 12, 2020. This is how my family and myself had to gather together to actually spend some time since the virus started. Our family is a very united family, we are very close and before COVID-19 started we used to get together in somebody’s house and just cook and dance and talk, and enjoy every second of it but everything changed when the virus started it was spreading too fast, and everybody was scared. I remember how my mom was always watching the news and you could see all the videos of all those people that died in Queens and they had so many bodies that they didn't have a place to put them. Funeral homes were full and all I could think was about those families who lost a loved one and how some people were thinking that COVID was fake. The first time we use zoom was to celebrate my father’s birthday, it was something new and not something like we usually do but at least we got to see some of our family members. We were always home since we stopped working because of the pandemic. We used to work for a medical transportation company so we were “Essentials Workers”, we transport people to get dialysis treatment 3 times a week and after the virus started to get stronger we had to stop working because almost every patient we transported died of COVID-19 before the wave of summer even started. Sadly the COVID ended the life of two members in my family, at the end of June we got the news that one of my aunts was at the hospital on life support, three weeks later one of my uncle was in the same situation. We couldn't see them or say goodbye, everything just happened so fast that we were in shock and this is how we started our “Weekly zoom meetings”. The reason why I selected this source is because I want to show historians of the future how families use to communicate in a group without getting together. We used this tool to so much that we had an schedule, every Friday we had a zoom meeting to just talk about our week. To talk about our different point of view of the pandemic and not only that but all of the events that happened last year, like the protest that started shortly after George Floyd was killed, and the election in November but most importantly those zoom meetings was just to make sure that everybody was good and to support each other since some of my family members were still working outside. Crazy how everything started last year and now we have a vaccine and hopefully everything will go back to normal in no time but for now we need to live with the memory of what started in the year 2020 that affected the whole world. -
2020-12-31
I could not hug my mother
For my primary source, I selected a screenshot of me and my mom while we talked through Facetime. In this facetime we were in the same house but unable to see each other in person since she was infected with the covid-19 virus. Apparently, my mother became ill with covid-19 while celebrating the end of 2020 with close relatives, they were around 6 members of my family and they decided to go celebrate that day since they had not seen each other for a long time. That day I was working at night and cannot go to the party. Well, on the first of January I couldn't go to my house either since my co-workers called out and I had to do a double shift. I left the first of January around 3:00 pm from my work, before arriving at my house my mother called me and told me that she was not feeling well and that she believed that she was infected with covid because she had all the symptoms related to this virus. She went to do the test so I went to my girlfriend's house to wait for my mother to call me to confirm what we already suspected, around 5:00 pm she called me to tell me that she, my aunt and my cousin were positive . We could not leave our house for 16 days and only seeing each other through Facetime. I remember we took turns using the kitchen or leaving our rooms. To use the bathroom, we each entered with a Lysol to disinfect before and after using it. We used gloves and a mask when we left our rooms, so that I would not get infected. Today, 5 months later, my mother is still suffering the consequences of being infected, she gets tired when she walks for a long time and is in training since she has bacteria in the lungs as a result of covid-19. I decided to select this screenshot as my source because it represents what many people went through during the pandemic. Family that lasted months without seeing each other when before the pandemic they saw each other every day and grandparents without knowing their newborn grandchildren were some of the scenes that we could see during the pandemic. I am the only son of my mother and we have a remarkably close relationship. Never in our lives would we have lasted so long without seeing each other in person and without having hugged each other, it was very painful. -
2021-05-29
COVID-19 and Mental Health
I took this picture on May 29, 2020, at 10:35 am. Why I choose this picture? This picture reflected my feeling in 2020. After months without going outside, I was heading to Staten Island to visit my aunt. I remember that I had anxiety even to open the door of my apartment. Whenever I went outside, it was close to my apartment, and my skin started to itch for no reason. My family used to watch the news the whole day. I was tired of listening to the report. Besides, during COVID-19, I was having an awful time. A few months ago, one of my friends died, and It was depressing for me. Before she died, I let my ego break the relationship between us. I refused to call her or text her because I was tired of looking after her. I remember my father told me to call her because I did not know what was happening with her. I ignored him. Riding to Staten Island that morning made me remember the hard time that I was going through. The day that I went to Staten Island, it was cloudy and dark. I thought that the ferry would sink into the water. When I got to Staten Island, it started to rain, and I did not bring an umbrella. I was mad, but it was my fault for not checking the weather. I compare that dark and desperate day with the mourning of my friend and the pandemic. For months, I felt guilty and thought that I did not deserve anything good in my life. The worst of all of this is that I did not have anybody to talk to. I was in quarantine for months, and it affected my mental health. I had no desire to continue college and my business. I used to cry a lot, and all I wanted was to talk to someone about how the pandemic and the death of my friend affected me. I had desired to go to the Dominican Republic, but I could not go. I think that this source can help historians because they can get to know about different perspectives of people during the COVID-19 pandemic. They would notice the anxiety that not only I went through, but everybody around the world had been through. My neighborhood was affected significantly. Some of my neighbors got COVID and died from it. I know that many people saw themselves as the picture. They thought that everything around them was going to end. They thought that they would be stuck in the pandemic forever. -
2021-05-17
Lesson on Covid 19
A father teaching his son about the Corona virus and how to adapt to his New environment. -
2020-03-09
Future Historians
Dear Historians of the Future, In 2020, there was a pandemic that occurred known as COVID-19 that made drastic changes in terms of restaurants, traveling internationally, school and work. One of my biggest pieces of advice is to ensure the president you have is not a narcissist or a leader who does not take responsibility for the bad things that happen. According to the article “Donald Trump owns the Coronavirus,” published on March 9, 2020, by a senior economist Dean Baker, this document explains how COVID impacted the community and what experiences people faced. Reading this article will allow you to understand the ability to have directorship in guiding the country to a better path then shifting it to the left. For instance, the reading states “It is very likely that we will face a recession as people cancel travel plans and are reluctant to go out to restaurants, sporting events and other public places.” Because of Trump, Americans and the people that live in it had to cancel many of their plans as a result of Trump not taking accurate information into consideration. He was mainly focused on putting blame towards China or the democrats, rather than looking for solutions with CDC. During the pandemic, many people believed Donald Trump was responsible for the Coronavirus outbreak in the U.S. in the article, Baker concludes: “In short, the fact that we are likely facing a serious pandemic, unlike any we have seen in more than a century, is 100 percent Trump’s fault. Because of his vanity and ineptitude, people will die, and many more will get sick.” This article demonstrates how Trump did not care to take action when the pandemic initially began. Because of this, one can say when it comes to having a narcissist president like Trump, leadership plays a role in situations like this for the world. In conclusion, I chose this source to explain my experience of the pandemic and what challenges people faced. In other words, this article will help you understand how the pandemic had an impact on many people's lives. If president Trump initially took action when he first started receiving news about the COVID, people would still be employed and parents would not have to stay home with their children. The negative aspect of this is some families struggled financially as a result of the pandemic and staying unemployed. -
2020-03-11
CUNY's Response
Where to even start? 2020, the year where everything and everyone changed forever. 2020 did not just consist of the Covid Virus it consisted of many other threads that harmed everyone’s mental health including students. It was hard for all students during this time but in my perspective College students. This documents faithfully explain 2020 and I will be here to give you future historians a more in depth look at how it really was during these times. The document I chose not only explains how we went from going in person to virtual but also how it made me feel as a visual learner and as a college student of course. CUNY mentioned we were going to have a “Instructional recess from March 12-18th”, this day I will never forget because I did not know that March 11th was going to be the last day of my two-years of college. When I received this email on Twitter that CUNY had stated this I was overwhelmed and shocked. The thought of everything being virtual just didn’t seem right to me, although I did have all the access from computers to internet access, it just did not sit right. As a visual learner this was tough for me, this was a moment of you get classwork and you basically have to teach it to yourself, not seeing my professors in person and through a screen was very hard to get used to, the internet sometimes would not work and it would cut off and I would miss most of the important things said during the lesson, it was honestly very difficult, this was not just tough on students, as well as professors having the same issues. This era was honestly tough, but technology really saved a whole year worth of schoolwork. To the historians reading this in a couple of years from now, I, as a person who lived through these times want you to understand the rough time we went through, from masks to face shields to many deaths and virtually going to school. These were moments in time that no one anticipated. It shaped the future into what it had become, masks may become the new norm, working from home may be allowed for certain jobs and companies, schools just might let people continue to be fully virtual and things may be extremely dependent on technology from now on. To conclude this 2020 document, though it was a rough year where millions of people died worldwide, I can only be thankful that me and the ones I love are safe and okay. We now know how to take proper precautions in case anything like this happens again, though I don’t wish for a repeat of 2020. The year of 2020 is one for the books and one that will go down in history. -
2020-08-03
The Pandemic that Changed It All
I think we all should take this as an experience to be prepare for the next major event. -
2020-07-15
PSC-CUNY Protest at BCC
For my primary source, I selected a photograph I took at a protest held in front of the Bronx Community College campus on July 15, 2021. The Professional Staff Union of CUNY (PSC-CUNY), the union for the faculty and much of the staff throughout CUNY, organized the event to protest the BCC administration June 26 decision to lay off 36 experienced adjunct professors at the end of their 3-year contracts, even though that their departments recommended that they be rehired. People in the picture include BCC Faculty, staff, and students, as well as those from as well as people from Hostos Community College, who came to support the BCC community and were facing similar cuts. The day was very hot, but I was nervous to the subway because of COVID, so I rode my bike from my home (about 24 miles roundtrip). I was pretty sweaty and probably stinky when I arrived. It was the first time I had been to campus since March 10, when, on my way home from school on the subway, I learned CUNY was moving online. (The campus itself was locked, but we stood in front of the gate on University.) It was also the first time I people from school in person since March; I was so happy to talk to them. It was weird to be with a group people, after months of isolation, but we all wore masks and stood six feet apart. Cars honked their support as they drove by. I selected this source because I want historians of the future to understand how the pandemic hit higher education and the connections among the COVID crisis, social justice movements, and education. Although I went to larger marches after the murder of George Floyd, I believe funding for CUNY is a form of social justice. I was angry that politicians and school administrators were giving lip-service to the phrase Black Live Manners, while cutting funding and jobs from CUNY. BCC’s students are overwhelmingly Black and Latinx, and many studies show that a CUNY education is one of the best schools for supporting social mobility, helping people support themselves and their families. Firing the adjuncts not only meant the teachers lost their income, and, sometimes, their health insurance, but that BCC students would be in larger classes; larger classes mean faculty have less time to devote to each student, which can make it harder to for students to succeed. While I understood enrollment was down and the budget from the city and state would likely be smaller because of the economic toll of the pandemic, I thought there were other places the administration could cut costs. (Such as their own salaries). I want historians to see that the faculty and staff of CUNY fought for what their students deserved and the connections among CUNY, social justice, and New York’s economic recovery. I also want them to see how people approached protests, which require gathering together with other people and often chanting or shouting, while in the middle of a pandemic that required people to stay apart and cover their mouths. -
2021-03-26
Choosing between Work and Health
This short piece shares the struggles and experiences of choosing between working as an essential worker and worrying about my family's health during the peak of the pandemic. -
2020-03-06
Food and House Supply Shortage
When the pandemic first started people were out of control buying food and house supplies. There was a shortage on meat and the price rose up to an unreasonable price. Not only that the people were buying all the toilet paper. Like whom would have thought we will run out of toilet paper. -
2021-04-28
COVID-19 Has Hit The Amish Community Hard. Still, Vaccines Are A Hard Sell
Officials are having a hard time convincing Amish populations to get the COVID-19 vaccine. This has been attributed to cultural differences and it's believed they'll start getting the vaccine once it's been around for some time. In the meantime, there are fears that the communities will have more COVID-19 outbreaks. -
2021-04-25
Ready for the one shot and done
Now that the CDC has cleared the J & J one shot and done again after the scare of blood clots people are ready to get their shots. Will people line up to get the J&J shot? I hope they will as there are lots of them in stock here. -
2020-07-12
A Nurse at Tucson Medical Center
Tucson Medical Center went from no Covid patients in January 2020 to approx 160 at the peak (actually our third) in January 2021. It was amazing to see how quickly beds were repurposed, negative flow rooms were engineered, elective surgeries were cancelled and all the staff rallied around the ever changing patient case loads. Paula Marshall, RN July 12, 2020 at TMC Bed Control Department I work at Bed Control. We accepted patients from mostly southern Arizona from our ER and from the surrounding rural hospital. The Covid Surg line would call distributing covid patients needing admission throughout the area. When I graduated from nursing school in 1974, I never guessed that our world would experience a pandemic in my lifetime. I never knew that my job would change the way my family viewed my job. I don’t work at the bedside but work in an office and contribute to bed utilization. My son’s family lives 6 miles from me but I was invited to visit 4 times during 2020. My granddaughter said, “you work in a hospital. You could have Covid and not know it.” Gee whiz -
2021-04-22
Seek the World talks about why their videos showed them without a mask
I am here to clarify the situation with Covid-19 and mask. I received many comments sharing their concerns about not wearing mask in the coronavirus pandemic. I kindly want to let you know all videos I released have been filmed before coronavirus. Those videos are new, yet I didn't get a chance to edit or release any video a while back. Why? I took a long break from Seek the World. The last time I filmed was more than a year. Thus, Sabrina and I didn't film or travel anywhere. From now on, you all will see new videos that were filmed before coronavirus. I applaud you all for showing care and making sure that I follow the safety etc. I fully agree with you all everyone needs to wear mask! Thanks! -
2021-04-15
Fauci clashes with GOP Lawmaker over when COVID restrictions should be eased
Dr. Anthony Fauci, pressed by a Republican lawmaker Thursday over when Americans will "get their liberties back," gave his clearest explanation yet as to when COVID-19 restrictions could be safely lifted, saying the U.S. must get its infection rate under 10,000 new cases a day. When asked by Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, at a congressional hearing to give an answer about when Americans can return to their pre-pandemic lives, Fauci, the nation's top infectious disease expert, explained that the nation has a lot of work to do before it reaches that point. -
2021-04-09
Clinical Trials for HIV Vaccine has been Overwhelming Success due to the help of COVID-19 Vaccine
Clinical trials for HIV vaccines have been overwhelmingly successful with a 97% success rate at stimulating the production of rare immune cells which could lead to vaccines in the future. The COVID-19 vaccine has led to the increased development of m-RNA dosed vaccine which is also found in many other vaccines. By producing the COVID-19 vaccine has led to much more funding and research into the mRNA vaccine field which will bring about new changes in medicine in the future. -
2021-04-14
CVS Changes Policy to be more LGBTQ Inclusive
CVS changed COVID-19 vaccination registration form to be more trans/ LGBTQ friendly. Originally, the form asked people to mark their birth sex in order to get the vaccine however, now they have removed the question. The CDC has come out and said it is important to only ask about the gender identity not the gender on the birth certificate. CVS has issued a statement stating that sex, gender, race, or ethnicity does not hinder people from getting the vaccine. -
2021-04-16
India's escalating COVID numbers
India has seen an explosion in their reported infection numbers recently. This Medscape article explained that India has recently crossed the 200,000 daily infections mark which puts India as the highest infection rate in the world. The article then explained how at India's largest Covid facility, Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Narayan Hospital, they are past full capacity. It is so bad that they are putting two unrelated patients in the same bed to maximize their patient capacity. This is truly unimaginable! The hospital's medical director, Suresh Kumar, expressed that it is the new variants and human behavior that has caused the recent spike in numbers. Hopefully this is not a preview for what is in store for the rest of the world. -
2021-04-15
Kentucky Vaccination Statistics
Congratulations to the 3 nonbinary people in Kentucky who were vaccinated, however, I believe there could be more as some people might be afraid to select that box or don't know what to select as their gender as many queer people like I do when it comes to medical records as there is a small fear of the worry of facing discrimination in the healthcare field. This graph is both funny and a sign of a sad current present for queer and gender non-conforming people. -
2021-04-15
At least 5,800 Americans infected despite vaccination; California, Washington open up vaccine eligibility
At least 5,800 people who were vaccinated have contracted COVID-19. Of the 5,800, 400 were hospitalized and 74 died. Since the vaccines are only 90% effective, such infections were expected. The use of the J&J vaccines has been suspended until research into a rare blood-clotting side-effect is complete. -
2021-04-11
Pandemic Street Art: teenage tagger made to apologize and cleanup
New York teen tags the streets in "response to multiple stressors. Quarantining boredom. Family problems. Feeling stuck since graduating high school and not yet finding a job or college that fit." -
2021-03-13
Friday the 13th...my last day at work
This is a reflection of the first day that Covid affected me. -
0004-04-12
COVID-19 Happenings
This is an image of a sign that says stay six feet apart. This "six feet apart" phrase was created because of the CDC guidelines that if you stay six feet apart from another person you are "safe" from contracting COVID-19. -
2021-04-06
COVID-19 variants
This is an article about the variants of COVID-19 that are either present or emerging in the United States. It is meant to keep EMS providers informed with up-to-date information so that they can provide the best care to patients. Some of the variants are more dangerous/have more symptoms than others. It notes that there is 5 variants of concern, which have increased transmissibility and increased hospitalizations/deaths. While this is not great news, it is a good thing that there are currently no variants in the world that are considered variants of high consequence by the CDC, which essentially means that medicine does not have effective means of treating it. Hopefully this remains the case and we can start to see a drop off of the variants of concern soon. -
2021-04-07
COVID-19 and the Brain
COVID-19 has gone through a number of classifications. First as a “flu,” then as a “respiratory disease,” then as a “vascular disease,” and is in more recent studies, as a “brain disease.” Some reports are finding that one out of three COVID-19 survivors have mental health and/or neurological issues. This not only informs us of the complexity of COVID-19, but also brings light to the need to continue medical and psychological support of COVID survivors. Some survivors are described as having PTSD, and anxiety disorders are being diagnosed in a number of survivors. Neurologically, many survivors report “brain fog” and other issues. Another unexpected toll the virus takes on those infected. -
2021-03-04
Colorado Governor Jared Polis Gets Engaged
The Governor of Colorado Jared Polis proposes to his boyfriend of seventeen years Marlon Reis due to their COVID-19 diagnosis where one of them had to be hospitalized. Members of Congress in his state had issues with him getting engaged to his longtime boyfriend due to their conservative views and the governor's response to the pandemic. The two long-time partners have two children together as well. Some residents of Colorado showed hate towards the Governor's news as he was an open and out government official and was the first Gay Colorado Governor in history. -
2020-06-24
2020 Virtual Pride Event
The Pride events that normally are live and in-person are now going to be going virtual due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Even though, this may be seen as a bad thing it is to keep all participants safe as the pandemic has been raging and the goal is to still celebrate Pride and also keep everyone safe. There is one positive that comes out of this online pride this year which is that allows people who may normally not participate in other parts of the world who could not travel to New York City or their area or country outlaws LGBTQ things can simply just have internet and log on and participate and celebrate pride. This being online may impact others in a positive manner by allowing these new people to have the courage to be advocates for LGBTQ people. -
2020-11
Comparing the Impact of COVID-19-Related Social Distancing on Mood and Psychiatric Indicators in Sexual and Gender Minority (SGM) and Non-SGM Individuals
"There has been direct correlation with mental health disparities and sexual and gender minority (SGM) compared with cisgender heterosexual individuals. SGM members report having elevatedrates of emotional distress, symptoms related to mood and anxiety disorders, self-harm, and suicidal ideation and behavior. Social support is inversely related to psychiatric symptoms, regardless of SGM status. The COVID-19 pandemic—with its associated limited social interactions—represents an unprecedented period of acute distress with potential reductions in accessibility of social support, which might be of particular concern for SGM individuals' mental well-being. In the present study, we explored the extent to which potential changes in mental health outcomes (depressive symptoms, worry, perceived stress, positive and negative affect) throughout the duration of the pandemic were related to differences in perceptions of social support and engagement in virtual social activity, as a function of SGM status. "-Front Psychiatry. 2020; 11: 590318. Published online 2020 Dec 22. doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2020.590318 -
2020-03-16
Love in The Time of Corona: Pobel
Our headline comes from adapting the title of a novel by the Nobel prize-winning Colombian author Gabriel García Márquez, replacing the infectious Corona for the infectious Cholera. In his love-triangle story, he speaks of the lessons learned from a particular woman, but he may as well have been speaking about the now-global crisis we humans are facing: “(she) stood him on his head, tossed him up and threw him down, made him as good as new, shattered all his virtuous theories, and taught him the only thing he had to learn about love: that nobody teaches life anything.” -
2021-01-14
Venezuela's Pandemic Street Art
A Caracas, Venezuela artist is using his graffiti skills to cheer people up during COVID-19. Wolfgang Salazar has gained popularity for his spray-painted murals of Venezuelan heroes and regular people. -
2021-04-17
North Dakota begins testing sewage for COVID-19 variants
Like many other states, North Dakota has started to test their sewage for COVID-19 variants. Although the testing can't track down the virus to specific households, it can determine if the city still has COVID-19 and what variants are present. -
2020-09-18
Pilot Projects Artist Talk: "La Morena"
Pilot Projects Artist Talk: "La Morena" is a conversation with Arizona-based muralist and painter Lucinda Yrene Hinojos and director Pita Juarez about the short film “La Morena,” on view Sept. 15–19, 2020 as part of Pilot Projects: Art. Response. Now. Lucinda talks about the process behind her murals, art and activism, and what she is working on next. The short film “La Morena” features Arizona artist, Lucinda Yrene Hinojos, who is claiming her roots and activism through her art. She brings all her love, inspiration and pain into creating murals with the guidance of her ancestors who energize her art. The result is a mural that focuses on the power of community, family and healing. This film was produced in association with Mango Skies and Poder in Action. To learn more about La Morena, check out: https://lamorenaart.com/ ***They discuss art during the pandemic, police brutality, social justice, how Covid-19 has affected their art. -
2021-03-24
Vaccinations for ages 16 and older could affect Arizona high schools
(Monday, March 22, 2021) Gov. Doug Ducey announced that Arizonian's ages 16 and up would be eligible for COVID vaccines. In particular, the counties of Pima, Maricopa, and Yuma are interesting in administering the vaccines in an effort to produce "a positive impact on schools and our community." The statement from the governor comes after the executive order mandating that districts that are non deemed as "high transmission" counties. District leaders and health experts are hopeful that as more students and staff are vaccinated it will reduce transmission levels and ultimately produce an environment safe for all. -
2021-01-25
An American Sign Language interpreter will now appear at all White House press briefings
The Biden administration will have an American Sign Language interpreter at every White House briefing, press secretary Jen Psaki said Monday. "As a part of this administration's accessibility and inclusion efforts, starting today we will have an ASL, an American Sign Language interpreter for our daily press briefings," Psaki said at Monday's briefing. "The President is committed to building an America that is more inclusive, more just and more accessible for every American, including Americans with disabilities and their families." The first interpreter was identified only as Heather and appeared virtually at the bottom of the screen while Psaki gave her remarks. The administration was praised for having the Pledge of Allegiance signed simultaneously with its recitation at the inauguration last Wednesday. The move set a different tone from the previous administration, which was sued in August by the National Association of the Deaf and five deaf Americans for not providing ASL interpreters at Covid-19 briefings. A federal judge ordered the Trump administration in September to provide ASL interpreters at the briefings beginning October 1, whether in person or via video. -
2021-01-21
While holding hands husband, wife die from COVID-19 days after 70th wedding anniversary
The increasing death toll from COVID-19 has devastated many families on a personal level. One instance illustrates that like no other. An Ohio couple that had recently celebrated their 70th wedding anniversary both passed away minutes apart, leaving behind seven decades of memories, five children, 13 grandchildren and 28 great-grandchildren. Dick and Shirley Meek celebrated their anniversary on Dec. 22. It was then when they innocuously told their children they were feeling a little under the weather. "They said to all us kids, 'we think we're getting colds,'" said Kelly Meek. But suddenly, things got bad and it was evident this was no mere cold. On Jan. 8, they both tested positive for COVID-19. When things started to worsen for both of them, the family asked for them to be together for their final moments. Hospital staff found a room for two beds and the necessary equipment. Dick and Shirley died in each other's arms on Jan. 16. They were due to get the COVID-19 vaccine on Jan. 19. -
2021-01-17
Bay Area firefighter paramedic deployed to SoCal hospital describes COVID-19 situation
MARIN, Calif. (KGO) -- As COVID-19 cases surge, Bay Area firefighters are getting deployed to hospitals across the state. Bob Craft, a firefighter paramedic from the Central Marin Fire Department is working the nightshift. Two hours into his shift, he intubated a patient in the emergency department who arrived to the hospital with stroke like symptoms and prepped a COVID-19 patient for their flip onto their stomach for the rest of the night. "It's the gamut from really regular people coming to the emergency department to people on ventilators on the ICU who are on the COVID ward," said craft. -
2021-01-16
Texas family without sense of smell escapes house fire
WACO, Texas -- A Texas family suffering the effects of COVID-19 is safe after their home caught fire, and they weren't able to smell the smoke. Fortunately, a fourth family member, a 17-year-old girl, was able to alert her three relatives and get them to safety. The one-story home caught fire in Waco Friday morning with four people inside. Three people at the home where Bianca Rivera lives lost their sense of smell due to the virus and were oblivious to the danger that was consuming the structure. The teen told KWTX-TV she smelled something burning around 2 a.m. "I started smelling burnt plastic, and that's when I got more alert and ran outside of my room," Rivera told the station. "I couldn't even pass the hallway because it was filled with so much smoke." "I would just do whatever anyone else would do for their own family," Rivera told KWTX. "I just wanted to get everyone else safe and alive that's all I wanted that's all I wanted was to keep everyone alive. I don't really count myself a hero." The family members escaped with their lives, but weren't able to save much else. The Red Cross and other relatives are helping the family as they recover from COVID-19 and a destroyed home. -
2021-03-27
Snapshots of some of the lives lost...
The coronavirus has taken the lives of more than 546,000 Americans and counting. Those we've lost come from all backgrounds and include the very people -- first responders and medical staff -- who have been working so diligently and selflessly to stem the tide of the infection and care for the sick. But the virus has also highlighted the disparities in the U.S. -- taking a disproportionate toll on communities of color, the elderly and the poor. Here's a look at some of the lives lost: -
2021-01-17
Betty White says she's celebrating 99th birthday in quarantine
LOS ANGELES -- The legendary Betty White turns 99 today, and like many others this year, she is planning a birthday in quarantine. White recently spoke with "Entertainment Tonight" about how she will spend the start of her last year as a nonagenarian. "What am I doing for my birthday?" she said. "Running a mile each morning has been curtailed by COVID, so I am working on getting The Pet Set re-released, and feeding the two ducks who come to visit me every day." -
2020-11-11
Hungary Government Proposes Gay Adoption Ban As COVID-19 Rages
The story from Reuters talks about how the country of Hungary has people who want to ban Gay adoption as COVID-19 is raging around the world. It is important to note that there are many people who are losing loved ones and who will need a home in the future. The proposed ban would not allow people who are both domestic and international to adopt from this country that currently has a COVID-19 rate that is going up. The Prime Minister is proposing that there be an Amendment stating that children be raised with Christian traditional gender roles. Hungary currently does not allow for same-sex marriage. -
2020-06-20
For LGBTQ Patients, the Coronavirus Brings New Challenges
This article by John Hopkins Medicine is talking about how the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted the LGBTQ+ community. The doctor points out that community members are more likely to be smokers and so they are higher proportionately to have complications with COVID-19. The doctor also points out that gender-affirming surgery in the Transgender community has been delayed or is not being done at all which has impacted that community greatly. It is important that the doctor gives the advice to not isolate ourselves in the LGBTQ+ community throughout the pandemic.