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2020-11-18
Banner Health Update in Colorado
Banner Health enhances visitor restrictions in Northern Colorado. Restrictions now to include locations in addition to hospitals -
07/22/2021
Safe Place for Care media kit
Chief Clinical Officer Marjorie Bessel, MD, outlines ways Banner Health is ensuring our facilities are a safe place for care for patients. Changes include using thermal cameras to detect fevers and continuous masking. -
07/22/2021
COVID-19 health care workers in unit
Nurses, respiratory therapists, physicians and others throughout Banner Health work around the clock to care for patients with COVID-19. B-Roll available for download, editing and broadcast. -
07/22/2021
Banner ECMO team B-Roll
Members of the ECMO team at Banner – University Medical Center Phoenix show how they use special equipment to stabilize and treat patients who are unable to maintain blood oxygen levels. -
09/10/2020
COVID-19 care: Celebrating 1,000+ COVID-19 discharges
Both Banner Estrella and Banner Thunderbird Medical Centers celebrated 1,000+ lives saved from COVID-19. Each hospital reached that milestone within a few days of each other. -
12/02/2020
COVID-19 Dec. 2, 2020 press conference
Marjorie Bessel, MD, chief clinical officer at Banner Health, provides a system-wide update on Banner's response to the COVID-19 surges in many of the states it serves. -
12/08/2020
COVID-19 Dec. 9, 2020 press conference
Marjorie Bessel, MD, chief clinical officer of Banner Health, talks about the pandemic, increasing numbers of hospitalizations and what to expect in coming weeks -
12/18/2020
COVID-19 Dec. 18, 2020 press conference
Marjorie Bessel, MD, chief clinical officer of Banner Health, provides the latest updates on how the health care system is caring for a patient surge during the COVID-19 pandemic. -
12/30/2021
COVID-19 Dec. 30, 2020 press conference
Marjorie Bessel, MD, chief clinical officer of Banner Health, gives an update on how the health system is dealing with the pandemic and the importance of masking up to contain the spread of COVID-19. -
01/06/2021
COVID-19 Jan. 6, 2021 press conference
Marjorie Bessel, MD, chief clinical officer of Banner Health, gives an update on how the health care system is managing the COVID-19 surge in six states. -
01/12/2021
COVID-19 Jan. 13, 2021 press conference
Marjorie Bessel, MD and other metro Phoenix health leaders discuss how their health systems are handling the challenges of Arizona's record number of cases. -
01/27/2021
COVID-19 Jan. 27, 2021 press conference
Marjorie Bessel, MD, chief medical officer of Banner Health, talks about the need for vaccination and social distancing as Arizona experiences slightly fewer COVID-19 cases. -
02/03/2021
COVID-19 Feb. 3, 2021 press conference
Marjorie Bessel, MD, chief clinical officer of Banner Health, talks about how Banner is handling with the COVID-19 pandemic and that the health system has vaccinated more than 125,000 people -
2021-07-22
Hospital staff charging $21,000 for an ICU Hospital Bed
Hospital beds and medical supplies face enormous pressure with the ongoing pandemic. This article indicates that hospital staff were charging over $21,000 for an ICU hospital bed, a scheme that was broken up by the Peruvian police. If one hospital has been caught, how rampant could this practice be? Also, how can the average Peruvian afford such astronomical prices? The fees and the fact that people paid them show the disparity in healthcare access between Peruvians of means and those without. -
2021-07-08
COVID-19-related suicide
In Peru the pandemic is broiling, things are far from slowing down. Patients with COVID may go to the hospital only to find out that there are not enough ventilators or oxygen to go around. This story by the AP press describes a story of a COVID-related suicide. Although this topic is not widely covered in the U.S. media, it is a consistent storyline in Peru. [CN] I selected anonymous, but I didn't mean to, please curate as normal and add this to a curatorial note KKdP 07/19/2021 -
2020-06-05
Banner Health warns COVID-19 trend could overload Arizona hospitals
Banner Health Chief Clinical Officer Dr. Marjorie Bessel told media Friday that intensive care units in Arizona were very busy. -
2020-12-09
Doctors express concern as hospital beds fill in Arizona
Some doctors around the state are sounding the alarm on the number of available hospital beds - or lack thereof - as coronavirus cases surge. -
2021-05-07
Story of civic warrior 2 nd wave in india
Daily diary of a covid doctor for last 2 months…. The message towards the end of 2nd wave of pandemic The last 2 months of 2nd wave of the pandemic have been the most hectic in all aspects emotionally, physically, personally. Finally got some time to pen down my experience towards the end of this 2 wave. Working in territory care hospital as an intensivist, managing own start-up Providing doctors on call for a home visit, tele and video consultation, free consultation for underprivileged people. Every day waking up after hardly 2 to 3 hours of sleep. I will would see 10 to 15 miss calls, Finish teleconsultation as much as possible and then do a home visit for few patients on the way to hospital, Home visit for covid patients has been a totally different experience, these were the patients under the most stressed condition not getting hospital beds, their family physician had stopped seeing them due to fear of self infection. with proper PPE protection treating patients at home successfully is so self satisfactory as a doctor which only COVID warriors like us can understand. Then reaching my COVID ICU where the sickest patients in the city are there, managing such a sharp surge in critical cases has been a Herculean task, time is key in critical care setup, the timely decision to give ventilator support or ECMO support saved few lives. thankfully I have the best doctors, nurses, paramedics, housekeeping, and management guys who make our work easy. Those grueling 8 hours In PPE without food water or toilet. And the most important was talking with the family of those sick patients, ask any 1 of our covid warriors every1 has hundreds of sad story of each family. This used to break us emotionally. Coming out of covid ICU, the number of missed calls for teleconsultation was pending. I would finish them while having lunch In the evening. During the peak of this my wife working as anesthesia Doctor at BHU got infected for 2 nd time, And lost 2 elder family member due to COVID, But the patient's family expectations from me kept me doing my work, and didn't visit my sick wife or attended the funeral of any of my relatives. Then in late-night had kept free teleconsultation slot for my native hometown Sindri, Dhanbad patients. And also underprivileged patients from pan India. After finishing calls, night again would start home visit for covid patients which would go till 2 to 3 am in the morning. Then finally to find a nap of few hours till the next day of battle. This is the story of lakhs of lakhs of covid warriors like me. But think about us now we are also getting burnt out, So request all people not to relax after 2 nd wave, get vaccinated use mask maintain social distancing even after govt unlocks, it's not over yet………... Dr Animesh Kumar Mishra Critical care medicine specialist Apollo Gleneagles Hospital. Founder of DCHS healthcare solutions. 9176138128 -
2020-05-06
A Bad Time for My Appendix To Act Up
I knew Cinco De Mayo in quarantine wasn't going to be as fun, but I wasn't expecting a really concentrated stomach ache after eating my mom's steak nachos. I was slogging through a now fully online spring semester of college and adapting my school's live sketch show FreqOut to be live-streamed instead over Zoom, so I had plenty on my plate. The next day, the pain increased to the point that I could no longer get comfortable in any position. My mom, after plying me with painkillers and crackers for a few days, decided to call in a family friend and registered nurse to check on me. She poked my stomach and said it was probably appendicitis and that I had to go to the hospital. I hadn't been to the hospital since I was carried out in my mom's arms and, this time, nobody was allowed to go in with me. I stumbled through telling people my symptoms as I had many more nurses and doctors poke me in that same spot and wheel me into different rooms. My poor mom was woken up around midnight by a call from my surgeon saying that my appendix was very sick but that I wouldn't have to worry about it since it was no longer in my body. Falling asleep in a hospital bed to the dulcet tones of a terrible HGTV show was the best sleep I'd had all year. They asked if I wanted to bring my appendix home with me, to which I responded "If I wanted to keep it, I wouldn't have paid you all that money to pull it out of me." -
2021-04-26
India Struggles
I discussed the Covid-19 crisis in India. As the United States improves and cases go down, India needs a lot of assistance. -
2020-06-04
The Doctors and the Community
I'm submitting a picture of doctors, including my uncle and members of the community gathered outside of the SUNY Downstate Medical Center University Hospital, to celebrate the discharge of a patient who beat Covid-19. -
2021-04-28
Allison Oskar Oral History, 2021/04/28
This oral history focused on how smaller communities tackled the COVID-19 pandemic. The interview discusses how hospitals tackled the pandemic, and it goes into depth about what it was like to work for a hospital during this time. Also discussed were the ways in which the pandemic affected mental health and how it proved to be beneficial in some ways. There was a large focus on the ways in which COVID-19 affected the 'work life' balance of the interviewee. -
2021-05-03
ICU Change.org Petition during COVID
I’m in a mom group on Facebook where this was shared. The woman who began the petition outlines her struggle with her husband’s traumatic workplace injury and how their lives and his recovery is impacted by the ICU’s COVID rules. There are also many comments by petition signers who believe COVID restrictions do more harm than good. -
2021-03-29
Healthcare Workers and the COVID-19 Pandemic
The website designed was chosen to focus on the topic of healthcare workers and their role during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. It showcases multiple elements of media from pictures, videos, social media posts and other engagements that compile information and stories about frontline healthcare workers that are putting their lives on the line to save people. It is necessary that the general population has an understanding of what our healthcare workers are going through during such an unprecedented time. It was important for me to show this side of healthcare workers because they are the heroes amongst our society, and we all talk about fictional heroes or figures and whatnot, but we need to appreciate those that are fighting and sacrificing themselves, for the betterment of our health. This archive project was for university course that I took this semester, and it required extensive research, but additional to that I also had the opportunity to reach out to healthcare workers and get their stories, combined with the many stories that are shared online by them, and compiled, they have helped in constructing this body of a work which I was fortunate enough to create. A large gratitude to them because without our healthcare workers, there would be no health in our societies. -
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 -
2021-04-24
The Devastating Pandemic
I have been witness to some really traumatic life events. This has made me experience the pain and agony of individuals and their families during this pandemic. This has also made me grateful for keeping me and my family safe. -
2021-04-23
Covid as a first responder
How the pandemic effected me personally at home and at work -
2021-04-19
Covid, my Next Door Neighbor
John, a close family friend who lived in the corner house at the end of our neighborhood. John, a father who held the best Fourth of July and New Years’ Eve Party growing up. John, a veteran and assistant coach to his son’s soccer team. John, who got covid. John, who spent months at the VA on ventilation and his family spent Christmas not knowing if he was going to make it. John was the first person who I personally knew who got Covid and watching the struggle his wife and children faced largely impacted me. My family had known them for years as my older brother and his youngest son were in the same grade, in the same little league, and even in the same classes. It was a very sudden progression as one minute his wife was posting photos of them together on Facebook, and the next minute my mother anxiously checked Facebook multiple times a day as that was the only outlet to post updates on John’s condition. Updates that were rapidly changing from John being in stable condition to being unsure if he was going to make it through the night. For months these updates were given through close family friends of John’s on Facebook. However, the last update came on March 19th, over 100 days after John had been in the hospital. The update started in big bold words “INCREDIBLE NEWS” as John was now in rehab and had a release date to go back home and hug his family. Before John got Covid, it felt like it was all just numbers. Increasing numbers of mortality, increasing numbers of positive tests. However, after watching the struggle John and his family faced for over 100 days as he battled Covid, the numbers became heavier and Covid was no longer a disease that seemed far away, covid was my next-door neighbor. The 17,000 people who have passed away from covid in Arizona were just like John, but their family and friends never got an update with incredible news. The weight of Covid has largely impacted everyone from those who have fought Covid, to their loved ones, to their communities. Covid was once something that was promised to go away in two weeks, now it is the root of many families’ struggle and grief. -
2021-04-17
RIP Dr. Wayne John Edwards
This is a screenshot from the Black Alberta Instagram page about the passing of Dr. Wayne John Edwards to COVID-19, as the description stated: "Dr. Wayne John Edwards is the seventh Albertan health-care worker - and the second doctor to die from COVID-19 since the beginning of the pandemic, according to Alberta Health. Edwards died at the Chinook Regional Hospital in Lethbridge on Tuesday at the age of 66. #BlackAlberta #YEG #YYC #edmonton #calgary #alberta #albertacanada #calgaryalberta #edmontonalberta #albertacanada🇨🇦" According to the comments of the post, Dr. Edwards was a respected and beloved family psychiatrist, the comments were full of love and respect for Dr. Edwards, he will surely be missed. -
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. -
2021-03-17
#JOTPYPhoto from Peter Van Cleave
Our pandemic baby -
2021-04-13
How does the pandemic affect children?
This article speaks about the clinical trials that have begun in Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center in hopes of getting a vaccine out for children as young as five years old. At the moment about 3,000 children have been on a waitlist to be involved in the trial. There are sites at which people are working to get dosage limits right for children ranging from 2-4 aswell. Many responses were collected by children on how they felt about being a part of the trial. Lila, a third-grader who is 8, was asked what was the best thing about participating in the vaccine trial, she replied, "knowing I might be able to not wear my mask anymore and knowing that the coronavirus vaccine is coming out." The effects the pandemic has on the children are visible as their hopes are to help the pandemic stop so that things go back to normal for them. -
2021-03-21
Banksy’s ‘Game Changer’ Canvas sells for a record £16.7m in aid of NHS charities, 2021
Banksy will donate the hammer price of £14.4m to help support health organisations and charities across the UK that enhance the NHS’s care and treatment. Christie’s Auction House will “donate a significant portion of the Buyer’s Premium to these causes” too. The Game Changer canvas first appeared in May 2020 at the University Hospital Southampton as a thank you to all the staff and NHS workers across the country during the first wave of the Covid-19 pandemic. The black and white artwork shows a little boy playing with a superhero nurse whilst Batman and Spiderman’s usual heroes are now in the trash. A reproduction of Game Changer will remain on view at University Hospital Southampton hospital. -
2021-04-03
Oral Interview with Toni Downs
Toni Downs is in a lead position at a hospital in Kansas. In this interview, Toni tells me about changes that have occurred at the hospital as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. She also discusses the long term changes she suspects will stay in effect, such as visitation regulations to the hospital. Toni tells me about similarities and differences between this pandemic and the start of the AIDS pandemic. She also discusses how the number of people going to the emergency room have dropped significantly, more than 75% at the start of the pandemic. Toni believes if we all work together at stopping the spread, we will get this under control. However, she thinks many things may stay around for a while in the hospital setting, such as the before mentioned visitation rules, and even mask wearing, in order to protect hospital staff and the patients. I am researching the unexpected consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, such as people skipping mammograms for fear of catching COVID at the doctors office. I chose to interview Toni for my research, due to her insider knowledge of the inner workings of a hospital. -
2021-04-03
COVID through a healthcare worker [PRIVATE Anonymous]
Working through a pandemic as a healthcare worker was terrifying. At the very beginning there were a lot of unknowns, and I felt lost, and alone. As I would go through my shifts as a CNA I had to be strong for my patients. I realized I would be going home to my family, but they were not. I was their "visitor" for the day. Patients could not just go outside for fresh air or wonder the halls to stretch their legs, they were confined to their room. Working in the hospital during this pandemic gave me a different perspective. While there were really hard days, there were also really great days. One of the best days was seeing a COVID recovered patient walk for the first time in months. It was times like this that made me realize that you are not granted tomorrow, and to enjoy each day to the fullest. I am so grateful for all the nurses, doctors, environmental services, secretaries, physical therapists, occupational therapists, case managers, and social workers who all came together to help our patients get through a challenging time. The song "Better Days" gives people hope that change and "better days" are near. The music video shows clips of people from all over the world and the impact this pandemic has on them. -
2021-03
My experiences working and living in the Covid 19 Pandemic
When the covid pandemic started, I don't think anyone really knew the extent this virus would take on everyone's life and how it will potentially change the world as we know it. I have worked in healthcare during this pandemic and have seen and heard of many people dying from this virus. I work in an acute rehabilitation hospital where people come after having a stroke or major surgery and they learn how to use their bodies and adapt to their new lifestyles. My hospital is not a place where people die, it is a place where people go to get stronger to go home to their families. there had been countless numbers of people who had contracted the virus when at the hospital and eventually had died from it even though they were on the tract to getting stronger, physically. Not only have I seen how this impacts the individuals who contract the virus, but it is important to note how this virus is effecting people mentally. I have heard of many people's friends dying of suicide from being in isolation during their quarantining. I have also learned that many children who are learning how to talk are having a hard time learning how to communicate with others because they are missing the important aspect of facial structures and non-verbal language which is impeding their ability to communicate and understand others. -
2021-03-18
Disparities in Healthcare during Covid-19
This article is about the disparities in populations that have been impacted by Covid-19. The CDC found that American Indian, Alaska Native, African American, and Latino people were almost three times higher than non-Hispanic white people in hospitalizations during the pandemic so far. These numbers are, unfortunately, more a reflection on our healthcare system as a whole, not just specific to Covid. Dr. Felicia Collins, a distinguished graduate of Harvard Medical School, is the keynote speaker at the 2021 Alvin F. Poussaint, MD Visiting Lecture and will be discussing these healthcare inequalities. On top of having an MD, Dr. Collins also has a Master's in Public Health (also from Harvard), which gives her a unique perspective into healthcare at the individual and population levels. Analyzing healthcare data through the lens of a physician must give her the ability to contextualize healthcare disparities in a way that others would not. This sounds like it will be an interesting lecture on a very important topic, and will of course be held over zoom. -
2021-02-15
One of my COVID-19 Case Investigations Experiences
I work as a medical investigator for my county, and I'm primarily tasked with asking detailed medical interviews and surveys of local patients (cases) who have recently tested positive for COVID-19. The second call I wanted to share regards an elderly case who had been admitted to the ICU shortly before I spoke with her. Her COVID-19 infection began approximately six weeks before our call, and she had long since recovered. Her husband, however, had not. He passed away in a local hospital, and she had only recently begun adjusting to her new life without him. She described him as the kindest man she had ever known, and stopped the interview several times to share heartbreaking stories of the wonderful things he had done for her and their family over more than six decades of marriage. She explained she had fallen in her backyard, broken her hip, and laid in the cold rain for about two hours before anyone found her. That's what landed her in ICU, NOT a COVID infection. She cried several times during our two-hour call, and I occasionally joined her. She explained that she had no COVID-19 symptoms, but still tested positive when the hospital administered their required test. I explained shedding and what that meant for her circumstances, which was the first time she remembered having been told that information. As she had not been contacted before to complete the survey, she graciously agreed to speak with me long enough to do so, all the while laid-up in ICU with a broken hip and awaiting a very unknown future. Among her greatest hopes that day was to make it through surgery well enough to go home to her son's gourmet cooking. She hadn't seen anyone but medical staff since her admit as the hospital disallowed visitors at that time. After we disconnected, I sent a Get Well gift to her hospital. She spoke several times of her Christian faith and belief in her husband's salvation, so I had a carved wood angel sent to her room from the hospital gift shop. We never spoke again, but I hope she understands how much she helped me that day by letting me help her in some small way. -
03/14/2021
Trisha Vaughn Oral History, 2021/03/18
Trisha Vaughn is the CPT Supervisor for a large Bay Area community hospital. In her spare time, Trisha hosts a podcast with her daughter, is an avid writer, and she is starting a small apothecary business to sell her skin care creations. In the oral history interview, Trisha shares how she has navigated through Covid-19 in both her personal life, and as an essential worker. She reflects on staying motivated and helping the people in her life stay motivated thought these hard times. Trisha describes how the social injustices and civil unrest in response to police brutality during the pandemic has affected her and those around her and about how the urgency of the pandemic has overshadowed the injustices faced by people of color across the nation. -
03/14/2021
Michael Levesque Oral History, 2021/03/14
Michael Levesque was a paramedic working on an ambulance at the start of the pandemic. He had a pregnant wife at home and was in the process of switching his career into nursing. He recalls the memories of working on the ambulance and taking care of Covid patients, as well as how Covid impacted the EMS services overall. He also discusses how it felt to be starting his career as an Emergency Room nurse during a global pandemic. In both cases, his job put him directly on the front lines of medicine. He discusses the early problems of lack of knowledge and equipment to properly handle this pandemic. He also explains the mindset of an expecting father, working in a high risk environment, and then coming home to his pregnant wife. Michael’s unique life circumstances and career path gives his interview a perspective that few people experienced. -
2021-01-25
A Year of COVID-19 in Canada
This is a collection of photographs for the anniversary of the first COVID-19 case in Canada. The photographs depict the changes the country underwent in the last 12 months. -
2021-02-24
The Coronavirus Affects Everyone
I know that the Coronavirus has impacted everyone’s lives in their own way. However, I never thought that Coronavirus would impact my family and me in the way that it has. My dad was a very healthy, active person with a strong immune system who hardly ever got sick. Then, one night out of the blue, he got a high fever and body aches. My mom and I assumed it was just the flu and that it would pass. Although after a week of him being sick, he began having severe breathing problems and the ambulance came to take him to the hospital where he was later admitted that night. Due to high precautions, the hospital wasn’t allowing any visitors, and we couldn’t even send cards or flowers. After a few days, we heard from the doctor that he tested positive for Covid-19. It was an absolute shock. My mind was in shambles and I couldn’t grasp the reality of what was happening. They started him on an experimental treatment immediately. Unfortunately, my dad was always too weak to talk on the phone or text, so we barely had any contact with him and only got information once every afternoon when the doctors called with an update. We patiently waited torturous weeks to hopefully hear of some recovery, but the treatment exhibited no improvement and his oxygen levels continued to decline. Then, on April 6th, we got a call from the hospital saying that his inflammation levels in his lungs were rapidly rising and the medications weren’t helping. They were going to put him on a ventilator, but the doctors didn’t seem hopeful that he would be able to come off it. They gave us his hospital room phone number so we could talk to him and give him any hope we had to offer. From the very few words we got out of him during the call, he told me that he was in pain and no matter how hard he tried to get his body to fight back, the virus was just too strong. That was easily the hardest day of my life. I felt like I was going to lose my dad forever without having the chance to say goodbye. Having to comprehend the fact that I may never get to see or hug my dad was absolutely heart-wrenching. Suddenly, after weeks of prayers and different medications, his body was finally responding to the treatment. The feeling I felt when I heard those words was something I couldn’t and cannot explain. Within about a week, his fever went down, and his lungs were starting to heal. It was a miracle. We couldn’t believe how quickly he was progressing. The doctors did one final Covid-19 test, and he finally came back negative. Soon after that, he was discharged and finished recovering at home. Currently, he seems to be doing much better, but he still has a long road of recovery ahead. -
2021-02-08
Recognize Their Courage and Sacrifices
Evaluating the financial impact of the pandemic on the country, House representatives are asking the government to remember and acknowledge those working on the frontlines and their families. The Bloc Québécois demands the government "significantly and sustainably increase Canada health transfers before the end of 2020." -
2021-02-02
Inadequate Sick Leave Jeopardizes Canadian Health Workers and Patients
Due to inadequate medical supplies, lack of vaccines, and inability to slow down the spread of the virus, the pandemic rages on. To make matters worse, over half of Canadian workers lack sufficient sick leaves, which contribute to more outbreaks and the dangers of contracting COVID-19. -
2020-10
Keep Trucking Along
In the beginning of the year 2020 no one knew just how historical this year was going to be. As a high school senior, senoritis was really kicking in and graduation was in sight. One day, in my global studies class, on the news, we heard of this crazy virus going around in China. I remember thinking, “Oh, it’s fine. It won’t affect me in anyway.” Little did I know there was a whole storm of challenges, obstacles, and battles coming my way. At first, I thought I was just getting a nice two-week break from school and we would be back, and everything would be fine. That two weeks has tuned into over 150 days of lockdown and a completely changed way of life. Every single person all over the world was affected someway by this virus, which is crazy to think about. Nearly everyone struggled with mental health and life changes throughout this time. I did as well, and although my mental health was at its utmost low during the Covid-19 pandemic, and is still recovering as the virus is still taking its toll with a new strand and heightened cases, I want to bring attention to an even bigger struggle I dealt with during this unpredictable, utterly horrible time period: the loss of my best friend. On October 26, 2020 my grandmother passed away at the glorious age of 90. My grandmother had health issues for the past five or so years of her life, but her state started to rapidly decline in August of 2020. At this same time, I was preparing to leave for my first semester as a student-athlete at Duquesne University. Leaving my family, my friends, my hometown, and my significant other was already so difficult but adding on the fact that leaving and knowing that it would take away my last moments with my grandmother was a pain I never thought was possible. I chose to still go and start off the semester since my grandma was moving around hospitals and I could still call her and see her on weekends if I wanted to go home and do so, and it was what she wanted me to do. I talked to her right before leaving for school. With the pandemic, she was only allowed two visitors everyday between the times of 2 and 5pm. So, with the majority of our family living around the hospitals, we had to all schedule times each day so everyone could get a chance to talk to her because of the one visitor limit in the hospital rooms. And I will never forget talking to my grandmother through my face mask about college and hearing how excited and proud she was for me to be where I am in my life today. Only a few days after that conversation, my family and grandmother made the decision for her to go into a hospice facility. This hospice facility was far more strict than the hospitals. My grandmother was allowed no visitors in her room. The only way we could talk to her was over the phone. We are extremely lucky that she was given a room with a window. My family would go and stand at her window so we could see her and more importantly so that she could see us while we talked on the phone with her. I came home for a weekend or two to talk with her through her window and got to see her in her chair with her favorite blanket smiling at all the accomplishments and stories I wanted to share with her. Once her health was at its lowest and her long, well deserved time here was nearing an end, me and my two siblings got to go into her room and say our goodbyes. The next morning my mother got a phone call that my grandmother had passed away. Losing someone, especially someone so close like my grandmother was to me, is the hardest thing in life. But with a global pandemic on top of it … the difficulty and feelings of it all cannot be explained. In the end, I know my grandmother would want us to keep living our lives and “keep trucking along” as she used to say. So that is what we did. Knowing now that she is at peace, out of pain and that she does not have to deal with this crazy world situation in her unstable health condition anymore, gives me and my family closure and security during this time of uncertainty and fear. And I will always know she is right beside me, pandemic or not, watching over me and cheering me on each and every day. -
2020-07-20
They Survived: Beating COVID-19 After 70
When Covid-19 cases began making the news in America, the stories were centered around nursing homes, where the population seemed especially susceptible. Day after day more reports of Covid-19 infecting and killing numerous patients and residents within these facilities painted a dire picture. And it is still dire. However, there are individuals who, despite their advanced age, survived Covid-19. This article from the AARP highlights four individuals in their 70s and 80s who suffered through serious cases involving long hospital stays and ventilators that made it through this virus. An interesting aspect of this article is every person interviewed ends their section by chastising people going out to restaurants, bars, and not wearing masks. Though they survived, they used this platform to try and convey the severity of the situation. As an 80-year-old female survivor from New York stated “This is not the flu. This is something that wants to kill you. It saps your strength and makes you feel like you prefer to die. This disease is such an unknown quantity. I cannot understand why anyone would refuse to wear a mask. It's a pandemic!” Hopefully, people reading survivor stories such as these will make people reflect on the choices, they are making for themselves and their communities. -
2020-03-24
Worldwide pandemic street art
USA Today, like many other media outlets, uses their platform to share images of street art that conveys community messages about COVID-19. Photographs range from March 2020 to January 2021 and include graffiti tagging, murals, paste-ups, and stencils. Many styles of art are represented and can be telling of how artists represent emotions of fear, solidarity, hope, thanks, and humor during the pandemic. Several of the contributions are put on boards covering windows of businesses that shut down during the pandemic, others are on hospital buildings, streets, and businesses. -
2021-01-28
Flowers brighten isolation for many during pandemic
A 65-year-old woman collects old flowers from funeral homes, grocery stores, and the like. She then makes bouquets and distributes them to nursing homes, hospitals, and community areas such as libraries and even laundromats. The flowers she delivers brighten people's days, especially in these hard times. -
2020-05-01
Used PPE
A photograph of the soiled PPE at St Paul's Hospital in Vancouver. -
2020-03-27
Donating PPE
Université du Québec à Montréal donated PPE to hospitals at the beginning of the pandemic.