January 27, 2022 - 14:23
Each article was very disheartening and devastating.The burden of illness and economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic was unevenly distributed across populations in the U.S. Social determinants such as socioeconomic status and occupation shaped patterns of risk. Healthcare disparities led to further inequalities in terms of access to medical services. Many populations were considered to be vulnerable. This included people with disabilities, incarcerated individuals, immigrants, minorities, etc. As the pandemic unraveled I remember hearing the narrative that doctors would choose who gets a ventilator and that individuals with chronic illness would not be a priority.
As I read the article by Elliot Kukla, I remembered the news article that stated 17 bodies crowded into a tiny morgue found at a New Jersey nursing home. Kukla stated that “my father has Parkinson’s disease and dementia, and lives in a skilled nursing facility….I am terrified of how Covid-19 will hit him, and everyone I care for with dementia in my hospice program”. It is infuriating that people are seen as ‘disposable’ and as a result do not receive the best quality of care. This pandemic should have been handled better and differently because it cost the lives of many.
NBC article: