Poem by Johanna Kelly, MD Pediatrician, Reading Pediatrics Group

In Their Own Words

continued from page 15

As the omicron variant became the dominant viral strain during the Covid-19 pandemic, people were already very “COVID fatigued.” Perhaps due to the success of vaccination efforts, the easing of mask requirements and restrictions on businesses and schools or the perception that omicron appears less lethal than previous variants, the public has become less vigilant and more accepting of Covid disease. What they do not realize is that because omicron is more transmissible, more people are getting sick, and even though more may not be dying, the healthcare system remains very strained with an increase in the number of hospitalized patients. And these patients are spreading the virus to others, including healthcare workers.

Getting patients to continue to wear a mask and socially distance while in the office seems to become more difficult at just the time that we need to be hypervigilant to get through this. As a physician who specializes in Addiction Medicine, I know all too well that drug dealers do not socially distance when making their transactions. We already know that patients in this field have not made good choices in life and many of them choose not to be vaccinated. But with the rest of the community socially isolating, we have asked these people to isolate as well. Isolation has always been a red flag for addiction, and this is exactly what we are telling these patients to do. Meetings, social support, and peer support disappeared due to the need for social distancing. All of this has resulted in more relapses and more drug overdoses. We are all tired of COVID-19; we are all tired of mandates. But the one who is not tired at all is the virus. The virus does not think; the virus does not plan. The virus simply multiples and adapts to the environment it is placed in. We will ultimately defeat this pandemic, that is not the question. The real question is what will be the ultimate cost in human life? — William Santoro, MD FASAM DABAM Chief, Section of Addiction Medicine Reading Hospital/Tower Health

PoEm by Johanna KElly, md, PEdiatriCian, rEading PEdiatriCs grouP