Healthcare 2021

                One of the most crucial ways of tackling the recent Covid-19 pandemic is the production and administration of the vaccine. When we think about which countries we would assume to have the best infrastructure and ability to deliver vaccines the fastest, it would probably be those with the highest Human Development Index in the world: Norway, Ireland, Switzerland, Hong Kong, and Germany. However, recent data has shown that the top 5 countries in vaccination rates per capita are not at the top of the HDI list nor are they from one specific region of the world. As of last week, the countries with the highest rate of Covid-19 vaccinations are Israel with 99 vaccines administered per 100 people, the UAE with 63, the UK with 33, the US with 26 and Serbia with 24. The reason for Israel’s high vaccination rate was that it negotiated a deal for an early and large supply of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine in exchange for providing medical data to Pfizer about the impact of the vaccine.

       The one thing I have thought about a lot in the past year is how the U.S. dealt with coronavirus. As someone in the science and medical field, I think we did not respond well to the virus at all. We were definitely aware of the first case in December 2019. So the fact that we didn't start a lockdown until mid March is absolutely crazy to me. I understand that a lockdown would affect the economy, but it still ended up negatively impacting the economy and so many people died too unfortunately. When I found out that President Trump signed a bill that cut more than a billion dollars for Prevention and Public Health Fund, I was so angry. We are so privileged to even have a program that helps prevent pandemics and the fact that he tried so hard to get rid of it is really upsetting.     Since I saw how the U.S. was handling the pandemic, I was curious to see how other countries were handling it. From what I saw, it looked like Australia was handling it really well. The most cases

Growing up in an affluent neighborhood in the suburbs of Chicago and having a parent who worked for the State of Illinois, I took advantage of the access to healthcare and flexible insurance policy I had. I never gave these things much thought, but one day in my junior year of high school, my history teacher said, "Look around at your classmates. Why do you think no one in this room is obese?" The answer was: we lived in an affluent town with grocery stores and pharmacies available every 5 miles and attended a well-funded high school that had gyms and athletic programs. I am privileged enough to say that that was my first experience with social determinants of health (SDOH), and it is very unfair—not for me, but for everyone who does not even get the chance to be in my position. In my opinion, social determinants of health impact the quality of life and the susceptibility of an   individual to a health issue more than genetics, and this is something that needs to be explici

  Analysis Paralysis  With the recent emergency use authorization of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine by the FDA, we now have three COVID-19 vaccines available in the US.  This is great news as it is another weapon we can use in the fight to limit the spread of COVID.  However, in our current social climate where conspiracies and misinformation are seemingly at the forefront of everything, people are increasingly skeptical about receiving these vaccines.   I was talking with my mom this past week and this topic about COVID-19 vaccines came up.  My grandma was recently able to receive the first dose of the Moderna vaccine and I was curious if she experienced any side effects as that was a concern of hers.  Fortunately, she only had some soreness which was not nearly as bad as her past shingles shot.  According to the clinical trials, the Moderna vaccine is reported to be about 94% effective at preventing COVID-19; similar to the Pfizer-BioNTech one with about 95% efficacy.  My mom is e

    A few summers ago, I got really sick while visiting family in China. It wasn't until I woke up running a 103 F fever one morning that I went to a hospital there. Even in a state of fever-induced delirium, I remember being worried about the wait time, or not making an appointment-- things I'm used to with US hospitals-- or the potentially complicated paperwork involved with being a visitor from out of the country. I thought it might've been better to keep taking ibuprofen and just tough it out.  Surprisingly, I was seen by a doctor not long after arriving at the hospital. They conducted a quick blood test to determine if I had an infection, and I was able to pick up my medications and leave the hospital within an hour. The entire visit was very streamlined. My relatives in China told me this was normal. A few months ago, my friend spoke to me about her experience taking her mom to the emergency department in the US. Her mom had a systolic blood pressure above 180 mm Hg a

      Working in retail pharmacy, I've seen more than my fair share of barriers to medication access. From transportation to monetary issues, there are a vast amount of ways that patients can be prevented from getting the care they need. In regard to the COVID vaccinations, this is especially predominant. For example, the area I work in has a high elderly population who are some of the highest on the list for receiving the vaccine. This patient group is well-known for their challenges with technology, so online scheduling - which is seen as more convenient - is quite the opposite for them. This goes for any appointment, but is currently more pressing with getting vaccinations to the public. There isn't enough vaccine supply to allow for walk-in administration at this time and the current supply has strict time and temperature restraints that severely limit its use. Given time this restriction will no longer be an issue, especially with the introduction of the Johnson & John

 It comes as no surprise that American culture is vastly different from other western nations. In fact, many Americans find pride in this fact, but is it really that great? With the onset of the recent pandemic, America and its people have highlighted the qualities and traits that separate them as a whole from their European counterparts. The initial response to SARS-CoV-2 was alarming yet unsurprising in the United States. From its former commander-in-chief downplaying the virus publicly to its citizens assaulting anyone enforcing masking protocols, America could not form a united front against a common enemy. What is to blame for this? Individualism is not a bad start. The states in our country are anything but united. Protocols to combat this novel virus varied from state-to-state, county-to-county, and even town-to-town. But why? Because the mere thought of "inconveniencing" yourself (i.e. wearing a mask and social distancing) due to a virus more deadly to others around y

If you are an upper or middle class white male you should feel fairly comfortable in and happy with America's healthcare system. That's not to say there aren't exceptions to that, but over all the system works to help you - as it should. Alternatively, people of color, most specifically black Americans, and women face certain challenges or barriers in getting the care they need. At the cross section of that more vulnerable population are black women who are often failed by healthcare providers. The most obvious place to see it is when looking at the rates of pregnancy-related death. When compared to other developed countries, America has the highest rate of pregnancy-related death and non-hispanic black women are 3 to 4 times more likely to die than white women.  The fact that America seems to be so far behind in caring for women after childbirth is already appalling but when you factor in the obvious disparity based solely off race it becomes even more concerning. There ha

     One of the first things we learn in patient counseling is instilling trust with your patient during an interaction. Building trust has many benefits in a one-on-one interaction: your patient will be more comfortable sharing useful information, following the advice you provide, and returning in the future with other issues. However, population trust can be harder to establish. How do we reach patients who never trust us in the first place, and therefore never seek our help? This is where the public image of healthcare as a whole matters.      A major issue in American healthcare that our class discussion has circled is the financial burden. Financial stress is damaging both internally and externally of healthcare systems, precipitating various outcomes that harm population confidence in healthcare. The capitalistic side of the healthcare industry has been a large strain on public trust. Health systems are large and expensive to run considering all the technology, maintenance,

  I think our country is amongst a very pivotal time where conversations about race and ethnicity permeate every facet of our lives. I would like to assume that American health systems are created equal and that everyone who seeks care will be afforded the same treatment and passion they deserve for being human, however, as a Black man in America I know that is not true. As with most major American institutions, healthcare needs to undergo drastic reform before it can truly attest to equality for everyone. There is a very blatant lack of representation of Black health professionals in the United States and it is reflected in the mortality rates of Black Americans across multiple health statistics. The effects can be seen in the overwhelming rate of Blacks who died from COVID as compared to other races or even the alarming high mortality rate of Black mothers who die during pregnancy or while giving birth. According an analysis conducted by NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene Bu

 From 2012-2015, I had the privilege of working alongside my mother at an urgent care clinic she owned and established on the south side of Lansing, MI. Her clinic was located within a predominantly low-income, high crime African American community where more than 90% of the patients were either on Medicaid, Medicare, or did not have any insurance at all. Although I was not medically certified to treat any of the patients, the various observations I made while working the front desk exposed me to the overwhelming health disparities and disadvantages that this patient population were forced to make their reality.     With a population of about 71,000 and approximately 30% of the entire city being on Medicaid, the south side of Lansing has only three physician's offices: Lansing Urgent Care, South Side Medical Center, and my mother's urgent care clinic. Lansing Urgent Care does not take patients with Medicaid meaning they don't treat "poor people." This apparent dis

 One of the frequently overlooked dimensions of the United States healthcare system is the externalization of the costs associated with poor quality and high-stress working conditions those working in private corporate entities face daily.  It has become generally accepted that the lower the wage a job pays in the US, the worse the working conditions. In substance, this includes exposure to carcinogens, routine immersion in toxic environments,  long work hours and draconian policies that places stress on mind, and use of manual labor over automation, placing stress on the body. Individuals working these jobs often are provided meager health benefits, often far less than the long term damage being done to them, and often do not have enough money to live a basic life much less save for the future. This leaves them in a position where they are unable to care for themselves. To whit, the most common cause of bankruptcy in the United states is the occurence of a healthcare emergency.  Corpo

  The definition of healthcare is defined as the maintenance and/or improvement of health with the prevention, treatment, and diagnosis of a disease state. Healthcare is not only about a physician delivering a treatment and a diagnosis to a patient. Healthcare is a well-rounded system that is influenced by social and economic conditions. According to the World Health Organization, a healthcare system requires a financing mechanism, trained and professional workforce, reliable policies, and well-maintained health facilities to deliver medicine and technology. A good healthcare system can contribute to a country’s economy, it’s development and its industrialization.             According to worldometers.info Hong Kong and Japan have the highest life expectancy with around 85 years and Macao, Switzerland, Singapore, Italy and Spain are close with a life expectancy average of 84. For comparison, the United States ranked 46 (yes, you read that right FORTY-SIX) with an average life expectanc

     After working for a couple years in a retail pharmacy, one of the most common issues I see that creates a barrier to care is insurance changes. Anyone who has worked in a retail pharmacy can easily identify the beginning of the year as being the most challenging when it comes to getting prescriptions covered for patients. This barrier can be seen in many different forms. For example, at the beginning of the year many people get new insurance plans, but don’t always have the processing numbers needed in order to bill the insurance for a prescription. In other cases, they might keep the same insurance or switch to a new one but a drug they consistently take is no longer covered. Even if a patient has the correct numbers and their medication is on the formulary, sometimes the deductible at the beginning of the year is so high that they are unable to afford their medications. This is further complicated in young adults who may still be on their parent’s insurance plan but are now resp

      Universal healthcare. It is quite odd how the rest of the world has been able to implement access to healthcare for all, yet the concept remains an enigma in the United States. Year after year, the data demonstrates that the U.S. far exceeds the health expenditure per capita of other countries, yet the issue remains unaddressed. In pharmacy, we witness firsthand the barriers to healthcare access, particularly with regards to drug coverage. As the daughter of Pfizer employees, accessing medications has never been an issue for me. In fact, I’m the annoying patient who requests Zithromax Z-packs instead of generic azithromycin because I have no copay. However, working in community pharmacy has opened my eyes to the reality that the majority of people do not have adequate drug coverage and regularly encounter unaffordable copays. I frequently encounter patients who come to pick up medications and realize that they cannot afford all of them. It breaks my heart watching them go through