March marks the fifth anniversary of the lockdown resulting from the Covid-19 pandemic. More than seven million people have died from the disease worldwide, more than 1.2 million of them in the United States. Some 6,500 Americans have died of the virus since the beginning of this year.
Beyond the deaths and the supply issues that have led to continuing inflation, Covid has created not only lingering health effects but a demarcation between the way we lived before the pandemic and the way we live now, particularly in the areas of remote work and remote learning.
Recently, the Westfair Business Journal reached out to Yoshua Quinones, M.D. — a board-certified internist with Medical Offices of Manhattan and contributor to LabFinder for a postmortem on the last five years. Quinones is a graduate of the Universidad Autónoma de Guadalajara School of Medicine and trained at Wyckoff Heights Medical Center in Brooklyn. He’s dedicated to preventive medicine, specializing in hypertension, diabetes, mental health, obesity and well-being.
Fluent in English, Russian and Spanish, Quinones aims to prevent these and other medical conditions by educating patients and communities about healthy habits, risk factors and regular checkups:
Dr. Quinones, it’s been five years since Covid came to these shores and the country went into lockdown. What is your biggest takeaway from that experience?
“My biggest takeaway is that we are very vulnerable. It showed how weak and connected we all are, how a virus can change everyone’s lives. In just a few days, hospitals overflowed, businesses shut down, schools closed and everyday life came to a huge halt. Sadly, many families were separated, and people lost their jobs overnight. It became clear that no matter where we lived or how much money we had, no one was completely safe.
“Also, we all learned that N95 masks are crucial for preventing the spread of diseases. One more takeaway is to always keep your pantry stocked with extra medicine, hygiene supplies and food.”
What did we get wrong about the pandemic and do wrong in combating it?
“We messed up in many, many ways. At first, Covid wasn’t taken seriously, and by the time action was taken, it was too late. People were confused about masks, vaccines and lockdowns. Essential workers, elderly people and low-income families weren’t protected enough. Misinformation spread everywhere, starting from social media. Mental health struggles were a big deal, and there was a lack of assistance at certain points of the pandemic.”
What did we get and do right?
“Researchers developed vaccines incredibly fast, saving millions of lives. Masks, social distancing and lockdowns helped slow the spread once we started learning about the virus. Remote work and online learning changed our lives forever and have become a new reality. Doctors improved treatments by studying and understanding Covid-19. We also have more awareness of how important hygiene is.”
Many people who’ve had Covid have had long-term complications, including loss of hearing, speech and even singing voices – challenges that were not initially associated with the virus. Have we failed to understand its reach and to combat long Covid?
“At this point, long Covid symptoms are still being researched. There is no clear treatment, and many people are still struggling to get doctors to take them seriously. Sadly, some have lost their ability to work or even perform basic daily activities.
“This needs more awareness. We need more funding for research in order to help people with post-Covid symptoms.”
Given the current measles outbreak, what, if anything, have we learned from Covid?
“Seems like we haven’t learned enough from Covid, and sometimes we might even forget how it was five years ago. The measles outbreak proves that misinformation, distrust in public health and vaccine hesitancy are still major issues. We must learn from past mistakes and past outbreaks and evolve. Viruses and outbreaks must be taken seriously. We are all so fragile and need to support each other while relying on legitimate information to survive.”
