Morbidity & Mortality Podcast Episode 19
America has Failed. Yes, the United States of America has failed. Failed in controlling COVID-19 pandemic. Failed in testing and contact tracing. Failed in identifying, isolating, and insulating this virus. America, long before this virus got into every city, county, and all corners of this country, had the opportunity of separating those who have this virus from those who do not. But America failed. Now, she is left with long haulers. Left with over 6 million total cases and counting. Left with almost 190 thousand deaths. Left with over 40, 000 daily counts. Left with an abysmal baseline. America failed not because knowledge was lacking. America failed because they have rejected knowledge. America failed not because ingenuity was not available. America failed not because people were not willing to make the much-needed sacrifice. America failed because the political will to do the right thing for the people was lacking. There was no lead from the top. There was no example shown by those who swore to protect lives and property and defend the country, both foreign and domestic. Sadly, no seriousness was given to this virus right from the get-go. As a matter of fact, this pandemic was described as a hoax. Look at Hong Kong. Look at Taiwan. Look at New Zealand. New Zealand has stopped local transmission and has a plan to eliminate the virus from its territory. South Korea has reported about 11,000 cases. 11, 000 cases only in South Korea. In late February and early March, South Korea was reporting about 750 new cases a day. Now the country is down to an average of just a few dozen per day. Confirmed cases in Vietnam has been only 153, according to Johns Hopkins coronavirus tracking. Vietnam’s has a population of more than 96 million. But America is leading negatively. Leading in hospitalization rate. Leading in number of cases. Leading in number of deaths. Leading with no national strategy. Leading without compass. Leading on the fly. Over 6 million cases. More than 190, 000 deaths. A prediction of over 400, 000 deaths by January 1st, 2021. Why are these numbers important? These numbers are someone's dad, mom, brother, sister, uncle, aunt, niece, nephew. Someone with breath but now struggling to breathe. Someone born of a woman but suffering under the hands of a man who puts politics above human life. Lack of national strategy has put America in this failed position. There has not been a cohesive coordination of logistics between the federal government and the states. PPE has been lacking and healthcare workers have been made to reuse facemasks. Healthcare workers, instead of taking care of patients, have been working to design ventilators that will serve 3 or 4 patients from one source. Hydroxychloroquine was declared to be the magic med when scientists have found that there was no benefit from this medication on COVID-19 patients. All you see are empty shelves of medical stockpiles and little or no zeal to source for these much-needed PPEs. Inconsistent messages coming from the White House, CDC, and even the FDA. No push for mandatory nationwide facemasks wearing. The CDC has put out a watered-down school resumption guideline. FDA has touted convalescent plasma as the magic therapy for this virus with a distorted and exaggerated data. How can all these be happening in 21st century America? So, what should America and Americans do now? Americans should mask up. They should demand the truth from those in authority. Those in authority should clearly communicate the problem. They should empathize with SARS-CoV-2 patients, long-haulers, and those who have lost loved ones. They must stop playing politics with this virus. Above all, they must be transparent, listen to the experts, adopt a national game plan, and test, test, and test. Time is now. Let’s face the reality of Covid-19! Thank you.
