I would be interested to hear thoughts on masking in hospitals and doctors offices. Will this continue forever? I know people who have been refused routine health care because they won’t wear a mask and are therefore refused admittance into the waiting room. To those who see no downsides from wearing a mask I beg to differ. The personal interaction is NOT the same. Faces are important!
There are quite a few people caught in clinical hypochondria. Their fear has disabled their critical thinking and fear drives all decision making.
The problem for me is that these people are also very good at social distancing and retreating from any event exposure. This is hurting our society as it prevents herd immunity and indefinitely extends the pandemic. This is obviously dangerous for all that are compromised as their possible exposure is extended.
A reversion has occurred. That is, in earlier days we were told to shun the unvaccinated to try and force vaccination so we could protect each other and attain herd immunity. So now the reverse is true? Time to shun the hypochondriacs?
Great article. I completely agree that others need to set a better example. But instead, Philadelphia reinstates a school mask mandate tomorrow, May 23, 2022!!! How do we stop the people in power from making irrational, nonsensical decisions, not based in science, that are detrimental to the health, education, and social development of our children?
I also can’t imagine this gentleman is wearing an appropriately fit-tested N95. When I was working with patients at the pre-vaccine height of the pandemic I tore mine off to get some ( relatively) fresh, non-sweaty air the second I was alone. If you’re not gasping or sighing with physical relief when you take off your N95, you’re doing it wrong.
"Vaccination, weight and general health are the only modifiable variables (things we can do in our control) so we do better when we get sick. After that, nothing much you can do to your risk of bad outcome when you get COVID."
How on Earth can you say that? As simple a step as raising one's vitamin D level dramatically cuts the probability of hospitalization and death. And even the deeply-flawed Together trial demonstrated a positive effect of Fluvoxamine on outcome. Why ignore these?
For 2 years, it appears that the people saying masks are "no big deal" indefinitely are people already established in life...they already utilized necessary FACES/ expressions/ personalities/ charm/ charisma (faces required) to get everything that have and value.
Good point about the inevitability of catching covid (unless you're a hermit). I think what people think is that as long as they have their mask on everything is okay. I see this all the time with my adult students. The majority of them continue to mask, many still wearing cloth or surgical masks. They gather together indoors and talk only a foot or two away from their classmates. I can see the sense in wearing a high-quality mask when popping into a store for a few minutes, but if you're in a classroom for several hours a day, five days a week (most of our students are enrolled in 15–20 hour/week programs), those pesky aerosols are going to get in eventually. Like many have said before, all these efforts merely delay infection, not prevent it. (Wasn't that what the whole "flatten the curve" mantra was about? Spreading infections out over a longer period, no actually stopping infections?)
Well Vinay . . . . you are sometimes fairly slick . . . . . but not that slick. I recommend that you spend an hour reading about -- and thinking about -- the Fallacy of Relative Privation. This might help you adjust (or fine-tune) your crafting of the analogies you decided to use in countering the position of the solitary mask-wearer at his office.
I would be interested to hear thoughts on masking in hospitals and doctors offices. Will this continue forever? I know people who have been refused routine health care because they won’t wear a mask and are therefore refused admittance into the waiting room. To those who see no downsides from wearing a mask I beg to differ. The personal interaction is NOT the same. Faces are important!
There are quite a few people caught in clinical hypochondria. Their fear has disabled their critical thinking and fear drives all decision making.
The problem for me is that these people are also very good at social distancing and retreating from any event exposure. This is hurting our society as it prevents herd immunity and indefinitely extends the pandemic. This is obviously dangerous for all that are compromised as their possible exposure is extended.
A reversion has occurred. That is, in earlier days we were told to shun the unvaccinated to try and force vaccination so we could protect each other and attain herd immunity. So now the reverse is true? Time to shun the hypochondriacs?
Great article. I completely agree that others need to set a better example. But instead, Philadelphia reinstates a school mask mandate tomorrow, May 23, 2022!!! How do we stop the people in power from making irrational, nonsensical decisions, not based in science, that are detrimental to the health, education, and social development of our children?
I also can’t imagine this gentleman is wearing an appropriately fit-tested N95. When I was working with patients at the pre-vaccine height of the pandemic I tore mine off to get some ( relatively) fresh, non-sweaty air the second I was alone. If you’re not gasping or sighing with physical relief when you take off your N95, you’re doing it wrong.
Dr V,
I really think you need to see the forest for the trees
There is a full grown cult of Covid that has established itself
These people are obsessive paranoid hypochondriacs. And they believe in a society that minimises risk above all else
They are also in positions of power. They run universities and staff public health departments, and in some cases rule entire countries
If left unchecked, they will destroy the world.
THAT is what we are dealing with.
"Vaccination, weight and general health are the only modifiable variables (things we can do in our control) so we do better when we get sick. After that, nothing much you can do to your risk of bad outcome when you get COVID."
How on Earth can you say that? As simple a step as raising one's vitamin D level dramatically cuts the probability of hospitalization and death. And even the deeply-flawed Together trial demonstrated a positive effect of Fluvoxamine on outcome. Why ignore these?
For 2 years, it appears that the people saying masks are "no big deal" indefinitely are people already established in life...they already utilized necessary FACES/ expressions/ personalities/ charm/ charisma (faces required) to get everything that have and value.
Good point about the inevitability of catching covid (unless you're a hermit). I think what people think is that as long as they have their mask on everything is okay. I see this all the time with my adult students. The majority of them continue to mask, many still wearing cloth or surgical masks. They gather together indoors and talk only a foot or two away from their classmates. I can see the sense in wearing a high-quality mask when popping into a store for a few minutes, but if you're in a classroom for several hours a day, five days a week (most of our students are enrolled in 15–20 hour/week programs), those pesky aerosols are going to get in eventually. Like many have said before, all these efforts merely delay infection, not prevent it. (Wasn't that what the whole "flatten the curve" mantra was about? Spreading infections out over a longer period, no actually stopping infections?)
Truth.
Nice piece. I completely agree, we need to resume our normal lives.
Well Vinay . . . . you are sometimes fairly slick . . . . . but not that slick. I recommend that you spend an hour reading about -- and thinking about -- the Fallacy of Relative Privation. This might help you adjust (or fine-tune) your crafting of the analogies you decided to use in countering the position of the solitary mask-wearer at his office.