FROM QUARANTINES TO VACCINES, IT WAS AN EXTREME YEAR
Approximately one year ago, my wife and I had were aboard the cruise ship Celebrity Eclipse on a South American voyage when we were informed of the impending pandemic, and we were very concerned as to whether or not we could depart the ship and continue with a few days in Chile and then fly home. We had no idea of the magnitude of what awaited us upon our arrival in the United States.
Our ship was not permitted to dock at our original disembarkation point in San Antonio, Chile. Instead, we headed north to the port of Valparaiso. There barges resupplied our ship with provisions including needed medications for passengers and fuel. The only passengers permitted to disembark were Chileans. Finally, the captain announced that we would not stop in any other ports and instead would head to the port of San Diego. We were greatly relieved as flying home from South America would no longer be necessary. We were very concerned at the reports of how the rapidly spreading coronavirus as was shown on cable TV on our cabin television as well as from emails from our three daughters advising us to return home immediately.
One passenger became ill three days before our arrival with a severe case of pneumonia and was confined to her cabin for those last three days of our journey. She was taken off first and fortunately recovered after being successfully treated at a local hospital in the ICU. We learned later via Facebook that a number of crew members had also contracted COVID-19 as had a number of passengers. One couple we became friendly with returned safely to Florida. However, the husband contracted COVID-19 three weeks later and had a moderate to severe case but recovered uneventfully. Fortunately, his spouse was unaffected.
When we finally returned home, we followed the public health guidelines and quarantined for 14 days. Our daughter had previously been kind enough to stock our home with ample provisions during those two weeks. After that, we refrained from visiting family, friends and neighbors. A local farm stand delivered fresh fruits and vegetables weekly to our door. No individuals were permitted to enter our home without a mask being worn. After the end of our quarantine, we visited grocery stores and big box stores during the less crowded recommended senior hours. We followed these suggestions through the summer even though things became somewhat relaxed at the beginning of summer. A few of our nearby neighbors came up with a happy hour held in an open nearby motor court. Social distancing and masks were worn by all who attended. No more than 10 people were permitted to attend.
Later on, we socialized with one couple outside our community on several occasions without any other individuals present, but just with that one couple. We did visit our daughter and her family once in the fall but did not travel for either the Thanksgiving or Christmas holidays.
During that time, the spike of holiday COVID-19 cases had a major impact on San Diego and the whole state. Fortunately, my wife and I were vaccinated at the beginning of 2021. All of our close friends and family above age 65 have been vaccinated as well. Because I have relationships in the medical field, I felt it was my duty as a physician to help others and that’s why I spent time administering the vaccines to frontline health care workers at the Sharp Healthcare System at the Spectrum in Kearny Mesa. Seeing how grateful these workers were to receive the vaccine gave me a sense of pride and purpose and made me feel like I was contributing to the battle against COVID-19 within our community. Additionally, with my 42 years of experience treating asthmatics, I felt it was my responsibility to follow very closely the progress in fighting this pandemic, so that I could advise individuals and colleagues on how to best treat specific cases.
Now with things continuing to improve with regard to a decreasing number of positive COVID-19 cases being reported, a decrease in people being hospitalized in ICUs and a decrease in fatalities, restrictions will be lessened on such things as dining out and school reopenings.
Personally, my wife and I have canceled all of our planned trips for this year but one potential (but doubtful) trip to the Caribbean in the late fall, and Zoom meetings have replaced in-person events in our lives. This year we have attended all of our important life occasions, such as milestone birthdays, anniversaries and even memorial services for departed friends, online. A bright spot has been online happy hours with friends and family providing us with an upfront and “close” view of our daughters and their families.
Finally, with regard to my clinical research center, we have seen possible subjects resistant to coming to our offices for all the obvious reasons despite our implementing protective measures. Webex and Zoom have taken the place of in-person meetings for site selection, investigator meetings and monitoring visits. This, I believe, will become the new normal. Despite these changes, I remain optimistic for the future success of conquering COVID-19 and other potential threats to our health through the efforts of pharmaceutical companies and the Food and Drug Administration as evidenced by the successful outcomes of the three large trials for COVID-19 vaccines.
I am optimistic about conquering COVID-19 and other potential threats to our health through the efforts of pharmaceutical companies and the Food and Drug Administration.