When I first started this blog, I never imagined that I would still be writing entries documenting this journey for days into the triple digits. It is remarkable that as we are slowly slogging into the fourth month of this quagmire of illness and economic downturn...we are only now seeing, or choosing to see, the structural cracks and foundational issues with how we see one another and support one another as human beings with different skin colors and in the healthcare system. Racial tensions are still high as protests continue in the hope of a brighter tomorrow for POC as this disease has pulled back the curtain on so many racial inequalities that were sown as seeds from the moment ink touched paper on our Constitution.
So much adversity--and yet I cannot recall any singular civil rights change that was brought about by saying, "well...what we have is good enough, right?" And what we have is not good enough. It just isn't.
In our geographic area, the governor delivered a report on Thursday outlining some of the challenges that Ohioans are facing due to COVID-19 with the re-opening of most businesses. Watching the briefing with my husband, we were both startled when the governor had a recognized spokesperson from our township give the bulk of the address.
It seems that in the two weeks since undertaking the "re-opening" of most businesses, our township has become the epicenter hotspot for southwest Ohio--spreading even further into Northern Kentucky. The way this is best scientifically tracked is by following the R0, or "R-naught" value, which we discussed way back when this whole mess first moved into our area.
Essentially, the R0 is the ratio of how many people are likely to be infected by one person who is a carrier of the virus. The bare bones of this statistic is really that any number less than 1:1 means that fewer than one person is being infected by a person who is a carrier on average. This demonstrates itself as a decrease in cases, less burden on the healthcare system, and as always, a flattening of the curve. Read: moving in the right direction. However...in our township, the R0 number spiked much higher than predicted with the reopening, resulting in a ratio higher than 1:1, meaning that on average, more than one person is infected by a person carrying the virus. This leads to spikes in cases, fewer available resources for those who are sick with COVID-19 or other ailments, and exponential growth that taxes our healthcare system resulting in a possible halt of the "reopening" to figure out why this spike is occuring.
In response to this surge, many "Pop-Up" testing sites have been created that rotate to different areas around Ohio providing free COVID-19 tests to ANYONE who wants and/or needs to be tested. It is important to note that these have been funded by the state, as the president has decided to take back the funds he originally gave for test sites since, "so many people are positive. It just looks bad." Setting that aside, the point here is these testing sites will continue to operate because they are funded at the state, not federal, level. The harder hit areas in Ohio will have more consistent "pop up" testing sites, but there will also be comprehensive sites rotating throughout the state.
Zooming in from the state to just our sector, this past week I have been able to enjoy the company of my brother being with us (after a long quarantine) before he begins his in-person rotations in veterinary medicine. With the level of exposure that he will be potentially encountering in his day-to-day work with animal patients (read: human owners), his rotation team, veterinarians, etc... we know that it may be awhile before we will be allowed to see him and we all feel the weight of that sadness. We also feel for him, and for all students who are facing a period of frightening uncertainty going back for veterinary rotations, medical rotations, dental rotations, etc.
Although most students are choosing to stay the course and trust in the PPE that will be provided, some students feel that they cannot take the risk, either for themselves or a family member. Let's keep those people in mind when we hear the governor asking, imploring, and trying so hard to stay away from a mandate of requiring masks (as 18 of the other states already require) to get this right in protecting one another.
Please.
When asked about face masks, DeWine said that "we are not yet at the point" in certain counties to require a face mask. That being said, it is the first time that DeWine has commented on the possibility of face mask requirements since he revoked his previous legislation, which citizens felt was "one step too far." He also said that for K-12 schools in Ohio, he was "confident" that teachers, parents, and school administration would always strive to create the safest possible environment for kids to learn and so masks would likely be seen in large capacity come fall, depending on the feasibility of going back to in-classroom teaching.
The term "front-line" worker has come to have several meanings, in varying levels of severity. In the first few days and weeks of March as our country scrambled to put together some kind of scaffolding for this unprecedented event, doctors, pharmacies, and food services were deemed "essential". As we started to get on the pulse, veterinarians (our dog actually needed the emergency vet during this pandemic) and "next tier" helpers rolled into the picture. Now we are rolling out big reopening measures and it hard to pinpoint where the specific issues are that create these hotspot zones. It is imperative we understand the data we are seeing and then intervene in ways we can track.
Gov. DeWine's statement to over five questions in which he asked how "he felt" or "what he would say" about the Trump administration, he responded:
"I don't see any need to have public disagreements with anybody-that is just not helpful. Please know I will do my job to the best of my ability and that [job] is to serve the people in the state of Ohio...I am not going to tell the speaker what to do; I am not going to tell the senate what to do; I am going to do what is best for Ohio."
Thank you, Gov. DeWine, for focusing on what is going to help move our state forward in what is truly an unprecedented time every day with no breaks. Thank you for looking after me, my brother, my family, my county, and my state to the best of your ability and choosing humanity over politics every single time.
My fellow citizens, please, please don your masks and capes. As Dr. Acton said time and again, we are in the unique position to be heroes-all of us-in this time.
How incredible is our potential in this moment to serve and save lives?
Prepare, don't panic.
-Allison
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