DOCTORS ' LOUNGE
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We are emerging , halfway into 2021 , from a 2020 that is still delivering heartbreak , fear and anger to most of the world . Our responsibility to each other as doctors and to our patient communities is to live up to Dr . Cooke ’ s example . The hardest everyday thing for most of us is trying not to judge people who refuse the COVID-19 vaccines . We rage inwardly at the needless loss of life and find it difficult not to let urgent anxiety infuse our conversations . Anti-vaxxers cannot offer up facts that counter our data . My impulse ( if I am honest ) is to yell , “ You ’ d really rather die of Covid ??!”
But what works , if we are lucky , is the opposite of yelling . It ’ s simply listening to them first . “ Can you help me understand why you ’ ve not gotten it yet ?” You can look for any common ground : do they know somebody who got vaccinated ? Sometimes , you can get a foot in the door , and then they slam it shut . Maybe you have planted a seed of doubt and dinged their certainty that the vaccine is harmful .
Be thankful that we live in Jefferson County , where our stellar Health Department has a flourishing needle exchange program . We still need your help with Doc on the Block , part of LouVax , where MDs join other volunteers in the Lou Steps program to go house-to house in the zip codes where vaccination participation is lowest . There ’ s talk of having vaccines at the ready , then and there , if the person agrees : but issues with opening vials and maybe wasting unused doses remain . Right now it ’ s just patient education , and you can sign up through the My Impact site . LouVax Mobile needs you too , our decentralized vaccination effort .
Remember to keep a lookout for the unexpected tableside diagnosis : many months without people-watching may have whetted your appetite . I just hope you don ’ t see Covid eyes .
References
1 ) https :// www . courier-journal . com / story / news / local / 2021 / 06 / 02 / indiananeedle-exchange-quelled-massive-hiv-outbreak-voted-down / 5291717001 / 2 ) https :// www . ncbi . nlm . nih . gov / pmc / articles / PMC6284413 / 3 ) Rural Spotlight Interview , Rural Monitor on the RHIHub , 11-28-18 . https :// www . ruralhealthinfo . org / rural-monitor / topics / networking-and-collaboration /
Dr . Barry is an internist and Associate Professor of Medicine ( Gratis Faculty ) at the University of Louisville School of Medicine , currently enjoying a very long sabbatical until return to part-time work in the fall .
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