by Yolanda Yoder MD

At the beginning of the COVID pandemic spring 2019, we pledged to help keep our community informed so that they could make wise decisions. Now 1 1/2 years later, we are all tired of hearing about it. Despite that, we think you need to know what we are seeing as local medical providers.

The delta variant surging across the central part of the US is rapidly spreading in our own communities at rates similar to our highest peaks last year. Below is the Indiana map showing the current surge.

And we are seeing it too. Sick people who feel awful. Hospitals filling back up again with those who are short of air. …..and with people too young to normally be in a hospital. People who had Covid last year are now getting it again.

It’s hard to describe how we as health care providers feel when people we care for become seriously ill with something they might have been able to prevent……. its best described as grief mixed with horror that we are where we are. Imagine watching a tsunami wave in the distance, and yelling down on the beach to warn people of what is coming…..and they hear you but don’t move…..and then you watch that wave go around some people but wipe others out. And then you play that same scene all over again with the next wave.

Nation-wide – over 95% of the people in the hospital with Covid are unvaccinated. Yes, vaccinated people can get COVID too and even pass it to others. That’s why masks are important again for everyone during this delta flare-up. But vaccinated people are MUCH less likely to get seriously ill from Covid.

Many people have waited to get the vaccine for a variety of reasons but mostly due to the newness and concern about side effects. Dr. Sanjay Gupta’s recent article addresses this concern as follows………”As far as safety goes, more than 4 billion doses of coronavirus vaccines have been administered worldwide. In the United States alone, more than 347 million doses have been administered. These are some of the most widely used medical products on the planet, and as a result, there is a remarkable amount of real-world data.

Throughout the vaccination campaigns, the number of side effects has been and remain consistently and extraordinarily low. The CDC is constantly searching for side effects. That is how the agency was able to confirm 28 cases of rare blood clots among the 8.7 million doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine administered in the US. The side effect monitoring system is very sensitive and the news has been good. Overall, side effects have been minuscule.

What is not minuscule is the number of deaths caused by Covid-19: more than 4.2 million deaths worldwide, including more than 610,000 here in the United States”. (written by Dr. Gupta) 56 of those deaths were among our citizens of Orange County. 17 from Crawford County. In addition to the deaths, we’ve seen strokes and lung clots in middle-aged people. And there are many others affected by “long-haulers” Covid symptoms of shortness of breath, fatigue, and memory trouble that goes on for months. These are not fake numbers. These are people we know.

Please get the vaccine.

And when you get the vaccine, remember that it takes 2 weeks of time after the final dose to be considered likely protected from serious infection….. so remember to mask up well with one that seals around your nose and mouth.

Sorry for the intensity in this post. It’s been a long year for everyone, including medical teams and the tone of this post reflects that reality.

We sincerely hope most of us can agree on one thing. That we don’t want to experience this virus smoldering on and on in unvaccinated people….and having more time to mutate into new variants….and keep causing havoc on so many levels. We can work together to change that.

Thanks for reading,
Yolanda Yoder MD
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We have much gratitude for those who helped the community during this challenging time.
We especially thank Heather Nichols for her 1 1/2 year-long attention to keeping us informed with daily posts to this local Covid info page:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/580815819187936/posts/894050061197842/?notif_id=1627920591513449&notif_t=page_group_post&ref=notif

 

As posted by Dr Yoder on Facebook Wednesday August 4th, 2021.
https://www.facebook.com/SICHC1974/