The Three-Two-One: January 2021
3 things to know, 2 things to follow, 1 thing to love
To those of you who are new, let me offer a warm welcome. Thanks for joining in. Here’s an introduction and credibility check. To those of you who are part of this community, thanks for allowing me a few moments of your valued headspace.
The Three-Two-One is a monthly feature for my subscribers. It’s filled with things I believe are the best of the month and simply cannot be missed. Here’s January 2021’s list.
THREE things to know:
This month we passed a very grim milestone. Over 400,000 Americans have lost their lives to a disease we all hate. Many in the #KC community are grieving, and hearing stories of loss throughout my day has a sobering effect on my typically joy-filled and uplifting pediatric visits. I’m eager to turn a corner. New leadership in DC has provided an actionable Pandemic Plan that should help our Country be directed towards policies based on the facts, and allow our national experts to freely offer insight as we continue to weather the storm. Find the links to the plan as well as constructive critique in this piece from Amy Maxmen in Nature.
Vaccine distribution is continuing. We have two vaccines with an EUA. The good news is that after 22 million doses delivered, the few experiencing allergic reactions from the vaccine have been successfully managed and most after-effects that recipients are experiencing are not unexpected. We should be hearing more about a 3rd vaccine candidate from Janssen/J&J soon. I’ll be digesting and commenting once the full manuscript is released. The details of the data will exceed the simplicity of a headline, especially as trial data will be affected by SARS-CoV-2 variants. Don’t miss this piece in Scientific American about what we know about the variants and how that may affect our vaccine rollout.
A physician at Johns Hopkins made our jaws drop, sharing graphs with record-setting influenza and RSV rates in the US. Typically, we are seeing hundreds of kids per week in our offices suffering from these respiratory diseases, many who need care in the hospital. This year? Crickets. Will this mean wearing masks and increasing hygiene measures will always be part of our illness season’s future? In my office, it might.
TWO things to follow:
Before we leave the house, we check the weather. Now, we can also check our COVID-risk “forecast.” Scientists of Resolve to Save Lives have put together an up-to-the-minute map that shares your daily risk of contracting SARS-CoV-2 virus in your community. Bookmark and check frequently.
For those of you in Kansas, there is now a swanky COVID vaccine dashboard. It offers more stats about our State’s distribution than you likely want to know. More importantly, it’s the hub for up-to-date vaccine sign-up links. I’m urging all my patient families to get vaccinated with any of the available vaccines as soon as they are eligible.
ONE thing I love:
I admit I have fallen hard for the DIY movement during our stay-at-home days. I’ve painted, reorganized, spent too much on Wayfair, and developed a new appreciation for YouTube. I’m particularly proud of how I refreshed our bar area, ridding the mirror backsplash of the 1980s with a more contemporary look of stone. Thanks to these stickers, it was done in about an hour. That’s right - this “stone” is totally fake. And, I love it. Don’t tell anyone, okay?
BONUS - This month marked a personal milestone. It was one year ago that I wrote my first Insta post on coronavirus. I commemorated the day with my reflections and hopes.
Have something I need to share, follow, or love? Reply or comment. Hit the heart if you learned something new.
Until next time, double mask and #runitback.
Great stuff! Love reading your insights!
Could you please share a link from JHU about the influenza and RSV rates?