I am not an infectious disease specialist, epidemiologist, or someone who works in the ER or ICU but I am certainly paying attention to what they are saying about the novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) and the disease it causes, Covid-19. I have seen some folks making comparisons between this and the H1N1 pandemic in 2009. I remember the H1N1 pandemic as being a busy time with a lot of sick patients and one child who was hospitalized with it but did fine. From my perspective, the H1N1 pandemic was busy but it wasn’t scary.
As a general pediatrician, my interactions with patients not infrequently involve flying saliva and mucous from uncovered coughs or sneezes or resistance to a strep test or flu swab. And there is always a toddler who grabs the otoscope right after smearing snot all over his or her face with the same hand. That’s just the way kids are and their innocence about these things is part of what makes it entertaining to be their doctor.
Sometimes after a child sneezes all over me, a parent will ask “How do you not stay sick?” My half-joking answer is that “I wash my hands a lot and get a flu shot every year. And I have already been exposed to everything.” During flu season, I am exposed to influenza multiple times each day and have not historically been wearing any protective equipment during those visits. And I have never had the flu or, if I have, it was never bad enough to recognize it as such.
But to the best of my knowledge, I have not yet been exposed to SARS-CoV-2. If I do get it, am I going to be one of those folks who doesn’t even realize they have it while potentially spreading it to others? Or am I going to get really sick and possibly die like over 60 doctors in Italy already have? Like I tell 13 year old boys who want to know how tall they are going to be, “Come back when you’re 22 and I will tell you.”
Fortunately, children seemed to be mostly spared from the worst of this disease and for that we are thankful. And I am thankful that Augusta Health has been working hard to prepare for what may come and that across the mountain at UVA they have already been able to develop their own test which they are providing to other hospitals.
But I worry about my parents and my in-laws and everyone I know with medical issues or those with the highest risk of exposure from their jobs. And I worry about people who are losing their livelihoods and the folks I know here and in other parts of the world who are wondering how they are going to feed their families if they can’t work.
So we prepare for the worst while we hope for the best. We take a walk, exercise, or pray to alleviate our anxiety while still maintaining vigilance. We don’t hug our loved ones or even see them face-to-face just in case, but we stay connected as best we can. We recognize the value in each person we meet and do our best not to put them at risk. And we continue to care for each other’s needs – physical, emotional, medical, and spiritual. And I think that is all we can do.
