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“Courage, Dear Heart”

I close my eyes or don’t watch movies with scenes of torture, or when a child dies or a pet is hurt.

So it’s been tough watching my grandkids, 4th and 7th grade, sitting, sitting, staring in front of a computer monitor for electronic ‘supposed’ learning, off and on the last months. 

I ventured out to Palm Harbor Nursery yesterday to buy red geraniums.  

“Don’t go out!” I hear the CDC voice, but I go out anyway.  The sun is shining in the great state of Florida.

During the purchase, the owner shared her horror about the kids in New York City who have been banished to E Learning.  I agreed with her.  The Academy of Pediatrics has stated that the safest place for children during The Virus is in brick and mortar schools.

Last Sunday, friends shared their experience visiting their elderly mother in a senior living facility.  

“They wouldn’t let us hug her goodbye, after the fifteen minutes, and she was crying.”

After nine months, these are not isolated cruelties, but repeated over and over and over, 

“Be safe,” everybody says to everybody now.

We’re sick of hearing it because it has created, not a safer world, but an unhealthy way of existing in our homes, churches, schools and businesses that used to bring life and joy.

The news media continues to peddle fear and misunderstanding so that we continue to tune in tomorrow. They’re desperate for ratings.  They have become expert in making us feel.  They should be helping us to understand.

The biggest turning point of 2020 is upon us.  Covid vaccines are ready for approval and distribution. We’ll be able to put this season of misery and death behind us.  However, in the misguided ideal of reporting both sides of the issue, the news continues to give air time to vaccine naysayers.

Many politicians, and the medical politicians at our CDC only make the problem worse.

We’re advised to not:  not go out, not get together with family for the holiday or any time, not travel, not touch.  That is cruel.  I can’t remember one week for the last nine months when the word ‘Surge’ wasn’t a headline in the newspaper, but the present week is always, according to The Experts, the beginning of The Worst.  That’s emotional torture.

In actor Alec Guinness’ autobiography “Blessings in Disguise” he describes his search for God during World War II.  He describes how he, along with many soldiers, turned to God, reading the New Testament on their Navy ship, in the days before battle and possible death.  

God is still our help, and we acknowledge Him as the source of providing treatments and vaccines for Covid.  He is our healer.

In Agatha Christie’s “An Autobiography,” she describes what life was like in London during the years of World War II:

“So time went on, now not so much like a nightmare as something that had been always going on, had always been there.  It had become, in fact, natural to expect that you yourself might be killed soon, that the people you loved best might be killed, that you would hear of the death of friends…”

Later, she reflects on the virtue that made those cruel days livable:

“…we can hope… we do not appreciate that second virtue in the trilogy ‘faith, hope, love.’ … how often do we forget that there is hope as well, and that we seldom think about hope?  We are ready to despair too soon…”  – Agatha Christie

The simplest shopping trip, over the last few months, could be a cause for despair.  I’d overhear a customer snap at another customer, “Stand back six feet from me!” Or encounter empty shelves.  But yesterday, I had a different, delightful experience. I stopped in at “The Painted Pear,” one of the few specialty shops of handmade and unique gifts that has not gone out of business because of the pandemic.  After picking out Christmas tree ornaments, I spotted, on the top shelf of one of the display cases, a wooden, handmade sign:

“Courage,   Dear Heart”

               -C.S. Lewis

I’m a Wheaton grad and devoted fan of Lewis.  He has a way of getting to the important point in a most clear and beautiful way.

I wanted to buy the sign, because it was the message I wanted to keep in front of me now.

I asked, but it wasn’t for sale. 

I’ll have to make one.

Encouraging truths which hide like secrets in the newspaper, regarding The Virus:

  1.  Safe and highly effective vaccines are almost ready to distribute.
  2. The Infection Mortality Rate, in spite of the constant drone of ‘case counts,’ remains extremely low, especially for the young and increasingly, because of advances in treatments, those of advancing age.

-picture taken at the College of Anesthesiologists in London, England.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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A Compassionate Covid Plan

an overdue guest editorial by pediatrician Dr. Duane Rommel:

“In a lecture at Cornell University in 1964, physicist Richard Feynman defined the scientific method:  First, you GUESS.  Then you determine the consequences of your guess.  Then you compare those consequences with outcome of experiments.  If your guess disagrees with the experiment, it is WRONG.   This is science.” 

    from the book, “How Innovation Works: And Why It Flourishes in Freedom”

For the past 9 months, we’ve been making a lot of guesses about Covid 19.  Some of the guesses have been wrong.  Some have been right.  Some vilified, some verified.  Some, we await the verdict.

I hear leaders claim that they are following “science.”  What that really means is that they are listening to certain scientists who happen to agree with their political bias.  The science of Covid 19 is incomplete and complex.  Therefore,  public health policy leaders need to be open to reassess their guesses and policies.

Anthony Fauci was christened by the press to be our ultimate “scientist.” Policy makers had to heed his guesses or be labeled “anti-scientific,” “uneducated,” or a “conspiracy theorist.”   However, our present reality illustrates that scientific policymakers need to re-examine their theory and be open to new ones.  That is how science works.  

Today’s newspaper trumpets “New Virus Cases Surge Across U.S. and America.”  The scientific policies followed by most Western countries are failing.   Many states and European countries hit by the pandemic imposed strict lockdowns this spring.  They launched testing and contact tracing programs to stop the spread of the virus throughout the summer and fall. These policies have failed as these countries and states have tried to ease their lockdowns.   They prove that the virus can’t be controlled that way. Their scientific theories aren’t working.

In October, another group of highly respected scientists gathered to propose a new plan for dealing with the pandemic.  

I strongly recommend everyone read “The Barrington Declaration,” and watch their video titled, “Dissenting Scientists Issue Herd Immunity Declaration” on their website: gbdeclaration.org.  Their Declaration challenges the current guesses about how to defeat the pandemic.

They explain why our current policies are 1.) Poor public health policy 2) Unscientific in their conclusions, and 3) Immoral as general policy.

They present the concept of herd immunity as a scientific fact which applies to the covid pandemic.  We reach herd immunity with every highly contagious illness that exists.   Herd immunity is the resistance to the spread of a contagious disease within a population that results when a sufficiently high proportion of individuals are immune to the disease. Herd immunity is not policy or opinion, but the way infectious diseases are controlled.  It will happen. The only question is how we will get to herd immunity with the least harm to the public.

Their proposal rests on the unchanging scientific fact of Covid: the Infection Mortality Rate.  This undeniable scientific data should be driving public health policy.  The Infection Mortality Rate for Covid 19 is ‘age specific;’ or radically different for different ages.  These scientists insist that leaders in public health must, in their words, ‘exploit this weakness’ of the virus to defeat it and reach herd immunity.  

I’m seeing patients frightened by Covid in my pediatric office.  These young people and their parents equate getting Covid 19 with a death sentence.  In fact, according to the CDC, the chance of dying from Covid, for a person under age 19, is 3 per 100,000.  www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/hcp/planning-scenarios.html.   According to the CDC the chance of dying from the influenza last year for that same age person is 1.6 per 100,000.    For those 20 to 49 years old,  the chance of dying from Covid is 2 per 10,000.   The chance of dying from the flu is 2 per 100,000.   It’s not until age 70+ that the mortality rate of Covid 19 increases dramatically to 5 per 100.

This fact, the extremely low mortality rate in young people, which is accepted by all scientists, needs to be driving our policies. Scientific reality states that we will reach herd immunity at some point with Covid.  To clarify: the infection will largely come under control when enough people are immune to it.   Immunity will either be achieved through getting the illness or through a vaccine for the illness.  There is no other way.

The public health question that policy makers, assisted by the scientific data, need to discuss is: “How to achieve herd immunity with the least harm to the public’s health?”   

The Barrington Group recommends: “The most compassionate approach that balances the risks and benefits of reaching herd immunity, is to allow those who are at minimal risk of death to live their lives normally to build up immunity to the virus through natural infection, while better protecting those who are at highest risk. We call this Focused Protection.”

I strongly agree with their recommendations.  The second video illustrates their reasoning as to why this is better health policy, better moral policy and more compassionate than our current policy.  

We must stop being overly focused on Covid 19 alone.  That distorts our overall health policies to the point of harming the people we want to protect. 

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Fevers and Forecasts For Covid 19

 

Another guest posting by Pediatrician Dr. Duane Rommel.

I often get a call in the middle of the night from an anxious parent because their child has a fever of 104.  

“What other symptoms does he have?”  I ask.  “How is he acting?”

The mere fact that a two-year-old has an elevated fever is not a cause for alarm if the child is acting fairly normal, or if other family members have had the same illness.  Fever is only a symptom.  The important information for me is what is causing the fever. 

Similar reasoning applies to the most recent increase in Covid 19 cases in Florida.  The number of reported Covid 19 cases has increased significantly in Florida in the last week.  Forecasters are predicting their usual doom and gloom. 

“There will be catastrophic consequences,” according to the ‘model’ of Dr. Marrazzo of U of Alabama Birmingham Infectious Diseases. 

The big issue I have with the word “models” is that it suggests some kind of legitimate scientific basis for predicting the future.  However, every model which has been quoted in the news since the pandemic started has been drastically wrong. 

Governor Andrew Cuomo recently stated the same thing when asked about reopening New York, “All the national experts … were all wrong.”  There is not much difference between ‘models’ predicting the future for Covid 19 and tea leaves predicting the future.  These are guesses. There is a little bit of science and a lot of guessing.  So let’s start ignoring these guesses and concentrate on what is important.  

From the beginning, I have stated that many people will get infected with Covid 19.  The state of Florida has dramatically increased its testing availability and more cases are being diagnosed  which were missed several weeks ago.  

Also,  the state has relaxed the lockdown guidelines for most of Florida. Many more people are returning to normal activities with social distancing.  It is to be expected that more people will get the virus.   This also is not a cause for concern.

The infection mortality rate is the most important statistic, which the media continues to ignore.  The infection mortality rate is the risk of dying from Covid 19 if a person gets infected with it. The infection mortality rate in people under age 65 is about .1% in the latest U.S. studies.  This is a more encouraging and lower mortality rate than previously feared.  It is not necessary or wise,  in light of this data, to make any changes to present health guidelines regarding the virus in Florida.  

As Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom stated this week,”We have to recognize that you can’t be in a permanent state where people are locked away to see lives and livelihoods completely destroyed, without considering the health impact of those decisions as well.”

Efforts and resources need to be focused in protecting those who are most at risk of dying from this infection:  people in nursing homes and those with well defined risk factors. 

The most important statistics are not the daily case counts.   Other statistics to monitor are the ages of the individuals who are becoming infected, the daily hospitalization rates and  daily death counts.  These statistics will be better guides for our policy making decisions than the number of cases per day. 

A child with a fever can cause anxiety for a loving parent.  Reassurance and education  about how the fever is the body’s normal way of fighting an infection are often the only treatment needed.  The prospect of an uncontrolled virus at large has caused the same anxiety; however, the most important facts, like the infection mortality rate, should be trumpeted by the media to calm our country.

As a medical professional, I implore the media to cease broadcasting the so-called ‘scientific models’.  It’s harming my patients, and the general public as much as the screaming of ‘Fire!’ in a crowded theatre.

Disclaimer: My views may not reflect the views of Children’s Medical Center.  Please consult your own doctor for specific advice in your situation.

 

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A Prescription for Fear

Guest editorial by Pediatrician Duane Rommel, M.D.

In my first year of Pediatric Residency at the Mayo Clinic, I learned a major lesson.  We had to research a topic and present it at Grand Rounds.  The topic I chose was ‘The Placebo Effect in Medicine.’  Placebos are a harmless pill or procedure given for a psychological benefit to the patient.  The Placebo Effect, well documented in medicine, also explains why, when we do medical studies, we always take it into account.

I learned to use the power of placebo.  For example, studies have shown that patients begin to feel better when walking in the door to a doctor’s office.  My words and involvement in the patient’s life within the healing context of my office can influence both the actual illness and the perception of the illness in the patient.  This has a major impact on the outcome of the patient’s problem.

This applies to Covid 19. With Covid 19, as with many medical decisions  we face as doctors, there are unknowns.  We don’t really know the true fatality rate of this virus because the statistics are incomplete at this time.  We don’t know why it impacts the older population far more that the younger population.  We don’t know the likelihood of spreading the infection from surfaces which have been contaminated by someone with the infection.  We don’t know how the mental and physical health of people will be affected after months of ‘stay at home’ isolation.   

But as physicians, we are forced to make medical decisions within current knowledge, even though sometimes key facts aren’t clear.  We make educated choices on the science we have, along with past experience. 

Epidemiologists, another type of medical professional, make predictions about our health future. The scientific name for these guesses is “modeling.”   Modeling tries to put numbers on some of the theories which will predict our medical future. 

I’ve lived in Florida for 25 years. Floridians know modeling.  About ten times a year, scientists make models for hurricanes. They attempt to predict how strong they will be and where they will go.  Floridians spend hours, days, even weeks, glued to our televisions, watching the ‘spaghetti’ hurricane models.  Almost every one one of them is wrong in specific outcomes, especially when the storm is farther out in the Atlantic. 

The same thing is happening for Covid 19 modeling.  Two months ago, the models were predicting that there would be 460,000 cases of Covid 19 in Florida and that the ICU beds would be totally full by April 15.  As of today, May 4, there are 36,000 cases of the virus and about a 40% vacancy rate in the ICU’s.  

Our nation’s epidemiologists and newspapers have used models and statistics over the last months to scare us into behaving how they believe we need to live.  We’ve been told that if you get Covid 19 either you will die or, even worse:   “I’m not worried for myself, but I have a family member  who’s high risk, and I don’t want to cause their death.”

There’s a bit of truth there, but also, like an iceberg that is only partially visible, lots of hidden fiction.  The truth is that my life does impact others.  Because it does, I will take reasonable precautions, like six foot distancing and washing my hands and coughing into my elbow or possibly even wearing a mask.  But the insidious lie is:  ” I am the one responsible for a family member getting sick because I choose not to “stay at home” anymore.”

If we believe this lie, we wouldn’t drive our car with a loved one in it.  I would force my brother to get a flu vaccine even though he doesn’t want one.  I wouldn’t allow my children to go to school because they might get meningitis.   The truth is, every person is responsible for their own health. We can never fully protect our loved ones no matter how hard we try. I cannot take on the impossible burden of protecting everyone else’s health to the detriment of my own well being.

To be fair, medical epidemiologists will never give a message of comfort; their livelihood is statistics and graphs.  Scientists make the hurricane models. It’s the task of local weatherpeople, like our favorite Denis Phillips on abc TV,  to use their experience to interpret them, to advise and calm, during the storm.  Likewise, medical practitioners, the ones dealing with direct patient care, need to use their expertise to reassure the public.

“This is a serious infection, but very likely you will get over the illness, so take proper precautions and you will get through this.”  

Instead of hearing that reasonable and calming message, while the infection rate drops, the public’s fear rate now runs rampant.  

Today, in Florida, we’re allowed to go to the beach and pool. However, the Florida Department of Health has a two page list of disinfecting rules, so technical and at the same time vague, that citizens are afraid of liability or continuing to spread the virus.  There are warning signs at the beach.  FDOH is still spreading fear of the sickness that prevents people from enjoying these activities, even though the chances of transferring illness through them is likely extremely small.

Stores and restaurants began opening this week.  Jill went to three stores yesterday that were open but empty of customers.  Pandemic panic is still incapacitating us from getting back to life enhancing activities.  Many stores have chosen to remain closed.  The Placebo Effect is working in a negative way at this time.  We are being told the country is sick.  We aren’t being told we’re getting better. 

No one knows the final outcome of the Covid 19 story.  But as a physician, I choose to look for the positive outcome.  My goal is to remove fear from my patients.  In medicine the outcome is always better when patients have hope, rather than when they are anxious. 

 The biggest problem we’re facing now is fear.  Fear for myself.  Fear of me getting someone else sick. Fear is our enemy.  

In the film “The Farewell,”  a beloved grandmother in China is diagnosed with lung cancer.  She’s coughing up blood.  However, the medical community in China doesn’t believe in predicting the patient’s life expectancy.  The films’ true story plays out through the eyes of her granddaughter, a college student in America.  She’s horrified her grandmother is not being told the prognosis: death in six months.  Along with her parents and extended family, they travel to see the grandmother, ‘for the last farewell.’  The gathering of a family wedding conceals the real motive for the trip to China.  At the end of the movie we see a clip of the grandmother practicing Tai Chi, six years later. 

“It’s the fear of death that actually kills you,”  the grandmother’s Chinese sister explains to the granddaughter.

Modeling and statistics can be interpreted either to bring life, or cause suffering and death. 

As a physician, I choose hope and life.

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Risky Business

 

Another guest editorial by Dr. Duane Rommel, FAAP, member of Alpha Omega Alpha medical honor society, and Board Certified Pediatrican, practicing at Children’s Medical Center in Palm Harbor, Florida.

 

I was surprised at the overwhelming response to my previous post. The first article surveyed the current situation and treatments regarding Covid 19 in the U.S.  I received a number of questions from people who are at higher risk, according to the current knowledge,  of Covid 19.   Time to talk about risk.

We now know some people have a higher mortality risk.  We also know that some populations seem to be almost immune from the virus.  Clearly, age is the biggest risk factor.  The older you are, the more risk of dying from the virus.  Children’s deaths are so rare, the numbers can be counted on one hand.

My response to the question of risk is that each individual must make decisions about their life choices with input from your own physician.

Everyone makes risk judgments every day.  Often we don’t even know the exact amount of risk, but we know there is some risk involved. Older people commonly climb on ladders to paint or clean gutters.  We know that if an older person falls, he has a much higher risk of permanent disability or death.   I see this same risk assessment played out in my office every day.  We recommend the flu vaccine for everyone.  About one half of the patients choose not to get the vaccine which is proven safe.  Some patients are more concerned about their perceived possibility of getting sick from the vaccine, than dying from the flu.  Even when I try to convince them that the vaccine is safe and that you cannot become ill from the vaccine, they choose the riskier path of not getting vaccinated.  They have the responsibility and right to make this personal decision.

The same risk responsibility should apply regarding Covid 19.  Physicians should be informing patients about how to manage the new reality with Covid 19.   We need to inform our patients about the level of risk they face according to the best medical knowledge so that the patient can decide what course of action to take. Our knowledge of Covid 19 is continually expanding so these risk assessments may change over time.

As I stated previously, the latest scientific data has been very encouraging regarding the risk of mortality. Even today, according to the Oxford Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine,  Covid 19 will be fatal in a flu-like 0.1% to 0.36% of cases.    The large majority of the deaths from Covid 19 would be in the over 65 years population.  The mortality rate for people under 65 is .001%.

We have accepted these mortality rates as a society many times in the past with other serious flu epidemics without panic and shutting down the country. Unfortunately, instead of helpful data, for the last weeks we’ve only been inundated with daily death counts.  These numbers, out of context, have no meaning other than to create hysteria. That number tells me nothing about my individual risk or the risk that we face as a country. Our government leaders, standing on the best medical knowledge, need to educate citizens about risks they are facing.  Then each person may determine what risk they will take and make decisions on their own activities .  This is, basically, what Sweden is doing.

For the last few weeks, I gave government the benefit of the doubt about their leadership.  They were just being cautious in their heavy response to Covid 19. Now the time has come to stop needlessly frightening us.

I live in Pinellas County, Florida.  After watching yesterday’s County Commission meeting, I must speak out again.  The Commissioners were meeting to decide whether to reopen the beaches and swimming pools.   Citizens were allowed to comment on their decision.  Fear dominated much of their discussion and some public input.  A majority of citizens pled for freedom from the government restricting activities that under all other circumstances would be obvious rights we have as Americans.

The commissioners finally voted to open up the beaches and pools next week. However, it was obvious that they are very reluctant to give away the powers that they have assumed during this crisis.  Even though Sheriff Gaultieri told them that some current guidelines are unenforceable for a number of reasons, they still wanted to keep some restrictions on people at the beach.  The idea of restricting beach activities has no valid medical basis.  There are miles of beach in Pinellas county and people can easily social distance at the beaches.  The commissioners don’t trust that people know how to do that.   Or there might be a few people who don’t social distance enough.  This is ridiculous.   Government must give up these emergency powers which they are currently abusing.   They need to allow people to determine their own activities, such as beach-going, since they want to accept the miniscule level of risk.

Yesterday’s meeting illustrates the bigger issue:  who will decide our health choices?  The government, or patients under a physician’s care?  Our current crisis has become a major health mess.  The government has scared the community so much that the risk of Covid 19 has disproportionately eclipsed every other health risk.   Medical professionals who are able to understand and apply medical decision making must be involved in their patient’s health.  Many patients are now too afraid to even go and see their doctors.

The most important thing for our government leaders to do now is get out.  People must go back to their physicians to get the medical information they need to determine personal life choices based on their own risk tolerance.  To continue down the current path of trying to control the virus by restricting activities and controlling our behavior until a treatment or vaccine is developed, is unwise.  From the feedback that I received, the longer our leaders dawdle in that direction the more people will suffer and die.

 

Disclaimer:  My views may not reflect views of Children’s Medical Center where I work.  Please seek medical advice for you own situation with your doctor.

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Duane Rommel, M.D.’s Pandemic Prescription

The following is a guest editorial by Dr. Duane Rommel, M.D.  Duane graduated Alpha Omega Alpha, with highest medical honors, from Stritch School of Medicine in Chicago; trained in Pediatrics at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, and now practices Pediatrics with Children’s Medical Center in Palm Harbor, Florida.

 

Fantastic News!  The coronavirus pandemic is not as scary as we thought.

In the last 2 weeks, surveillance data has shown that the Covid 19 virus is much more widespread than testing had been able to show, because of the limited testing previously available.  As a medical doctor, I’ve been anxiously waiting for these results of antibody testing.  The surveillance statistics from this shows the real numbers of people who have been infected with Covid 19.  Two of the most recent surveys were reported in the Wall Street Journal’s  interview (April 25, 2020) with Dr. John Ioannidis, professor at Stanford’s school of Medicine.  He’s a well regarded expert in statistics, biomedical data, prevention research and health research and policy.  The surveillance testing showed that in a random population in the Stanford area,  the infection rate was between 50 to 85 times the number of previously confirmed cases.  This data has  been confirmed by  surveillance studies in high incidence areas in New York recently.

This is great because it demonstrates that the Covid 19  fatality rate is between .12 to .2%.  This is far less than the initial reports of a fatality rate of 2 to 4 %.  Also, of the fatalities, only 1% of the deaths involve people under the age of 65.  Therefore the fatality rate for Covid 19 is .0012 to .002% for people under the age of 65.  This rate is the same of most seasonal flu illnesses every year.  This is the key statistic that all public health decisions are being based on.

I’m excited about this new data because I’m a primary care physician.  My son and daughter-in-law are also primary care physicians.  We are uniquely qualified to analyze this data, as practitioners in the medical community.  We  routinely digest research and statistics from the the ‘experts’ in university and government programs, such as the CDC and FDA.  We continually have to make judgments for our patients based on real life applications of  medical .research and statistics.  We practice evidenced-based medicine, which means we make decisions based on scientific data.  However, statistics can be interpreted in different ways, depending on the biases of the physician looking at the numbers.  Medicine is not an exact science.

The first rule of medicine is “Do no harm.”  The next rule is that when a patient comes to us, we weigh the risks versus the benefits of the treatment which we are prescribing.  As this applies to our current situation, the nation’s physicians, Dr. Anthony Fauci and Dr. Deborah Birx have prescribed a “stay at home” treatment program for our country.  Based on their knowledge at the time when they made this prescription, this was the best treatment course of action.  Now, with the new information about the surveillance data,  we need to adjust our treatment program.

In light of the latest scientific data, we are doing more harm than good with our treatment program.  .  First, in the field of medicine, I am referring to the delaying of medical treatments and prevention.  The statistics are clearly showing that childhood, life-saving immunizations are being delayed.  Screening tests for breast cancer and colon cancer are not being done.  Patients are afraid to go to the doctor to get their diabetes or chest pain evaluated.   Medical problems are being caused by our current treatment program which are leading to an increase in mortality greater than the pandemic.

Other ancillary problems of our national shut downs are more difficult to quantitate.  Job loss leads to lack of meaning in life which leads to depression.  How will we tabulate the suicides related to our isolating treatment program? Fear and anxiety contribute to physical illness.  This is where primary care physicians are in a unique position.  We see the whole patient, not just the Covid related concerns.  We see the stress to our patients which is being caused by our treatment.   I have not even touched on the economic pain and disruption since I am not an economist, but that is interwoven with our current treatment.

The major objection to changing our current treatment plan is that people will die.   As physicians, we know that people die every day.  We also know that there are many illnesses for which we have no good treatments.  When a child comes to see me with a stomach virus, I routinely tell parents that the infection has to run its course.  I have no treatment for the infection.  I can make sure the child does not get dehydrated but I cannot cure the virus.

This is the case with most viruses today.  We have no treatment for Covid 19.  We cannot stop this infection from infecting 60 – 70% of people eventually, despite the public’s most vigorous practices. When the virus entered our country, medical advice pushed for us to ‘flatten the curve.’  This means that we were trying to spread out the infection over a longer period of time.  There was never a cure. The same number of people are going to get the virus: either now or later.   Covid 19 is a highly contagious virus.  This is the truth that I am not hearing from the leaders of our government, being advised by our medical community.  ‘Mitigation’ does not mean ‘cure.’   Your infection with Covid 19 may not happen in the next month but it will certainly happen in the next 12 – 18 months.  A vaccine is too far off for any help.  No responsible medical expert has promised any cure with our current stay at home guidelines.  Unfortunately, most people think they’re not going to get the virus if they work hard enough.  That is not truth.

We cannot make present medical decisions on “what if” possible treatments.  With the new statistics showing a far lower mortality rate, we must reevaluate our strategy.   We’re creating problems now and for the future with our treatment plan.  As a doctor, I make decisions based in the scientific facts of the here and now.   Consider the fatality rate.  That is the good news.  It is not Ebola virus.  It is proving to be similar to a flu virus, despite what the news has trumpeted with its 24/7 hospital videos and incoherent number counts.

In light of this latest scientific information, government and medicine must lead our country with a new treatment plan.  We need to let the public know that we do not have a cure for coronavirus and it will have to run its course.  We will monitor the course, to make sure it does not overwhelm society, but there are not any cures for viruses.  In mercy, we need to remove the gigantic layers of guilt we’ve laid on the general population; that by our own unhygienic practices, we are causing our loved one’s deaths.

We need to reeducate a panicked populace.  First, we need to remove excessive “stay at home” directives.  Encourage all people to resume all doctor visits.  Start meeting with family and friends.  Open up all retail and restaurants with reasonable social distancing.  Allow all outdoor activities: playgrounds, beaches, kids sports and fitness centers.  Reassess in 2-3 weeks the Covid 19 surveillance data.  If the infection rate is reasonable, make more changes such as opening churches and other larger gatherings.   Allow all domestic travel.  As much as possible get everyone back to work.    Responsible medical scientists will continue to monitor the numbers and statistics as we go forward to adjust for what we need to do.

The bad news, the hard truth that I am not hearing from our government and medical leaders, is that we have no cure for Covid 19 and you likely will get infected with it.  The good news is that Covid 19 is nowhere near as fatal as the original estimates. The really good news is that when you get your infection you probably will not know you had it. Let us start behaving with that reality.  We need to change our treatment plan and not harm the patient (our society) any further.   As more scientific knowledge becomes available, we will continue to adjust our treatment program based on that science and the wisdom which God provides to us.

 

Disclaimer: My views may not reflect the views of Children’s Medical Center.  Please consult your own doctor for specific advice in your situation.

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