Category: COVID-19

Meet the Leading COVID-19 Vaccine Candidates

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If you’ve been following the news, then you may have heard conflicting information about how soon a COVID-19 vaccine will become available. Unfortunately, my crystal ball is hazy on that front, but I think it’s fair to say that whenever a COVID-19 vaccine or vaccines first come out, initial supplies will be limited and focused on front-line healthcare workers, other essential workers, and people at high risk of severe COVID-19 infection. It may be several months before we have widespread COVID-19 vaccine available, so keep wearing face masks and social distancing until then!

Although there are still a lot of questions about when COVID-19 vaccine will come out, we’re starting to get a clearer picture of which COVID-19 vaccines may be available. There are currently four U.S. COVID-19 vaccines in the third (and final) phase of clinical trials prior to approval. It’s important to keep in mind that not all vaccine candidates will necessarily be approved; the whole point of a clinical trial is to study whether a vaccine is safe and effective in as many populations as possible. This post summarizes the four vaccines that are currently farthest along, but it’s no guarantee that any of them will ultimately be approved.

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Restaurants May Be Riskier for COVID-19 Than We Think

classic interior of cafe with vintage chandeliers and furniture
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Welcome back to another week! If your kids’ school year has begun, whether remotely, on-site or on a hybrid schedule, I hope it’s going well and they’re staying safe and healthy!

If you live in a northern climate, then the weather’s probably getting chillier and after six months of social distancing, the call of your favorite restaurant or café may be getting more and more attractive. Unfortunately, a recent study published in the CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) suggests that spending time in restaurants, bars and coffee shops during the COVID-19 pandemic may be one of the riskiest choices we could make.

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A COVID-19 Vaccine Study was Paused – And That’s a Good Thing

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If you’ve been following recent COVID-19 news, then you may have heard that one of the COVID-19 vaccine studies was paused last week in order to review an unexpected illness in one of the participants. While we all want the COVID-19 pandemic to end as soon as possible, I believe this pause is a very good sign that the COVID-19 vaccine researchers are behaving responsibly and with the public’s safety at heart. Read on for a summary of this story and what it does and doesn’t mean for the future of COVID-19 vaccines.

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We Need to Talk About Mental Health and COVID-19

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Content warning: this post will contain frank discussions of mental illness (including depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder) and suicide prevention.

Without a doubt, the COVID-19 pandemic has been devastating. But while there has been a lot of (rightful) attention to illness, loss of life and long-term complications from COVID-19, there hasn’t been nearly as much attention given to the effects of the pandemic on mental health. It’s particularly important to discuss it this week, during National Suicide Prevention Week.

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More Good News for Back-to-School

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Welcome back! My apologies for my unexplained absence these last two weeks. I’ve been researching information for a post on COVID-19 vaccine development, and I kept telling myself that I would finish it soon and not to start a post on another topic until that one was ready to go, but I’m sorry to say that I let the perfect get in the way of the good. I’ll be back with that post when it’s ready, but in the interim the CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report published a very interesting case series this week describing limited spread of COVID-19 among child care programs in Rhode Island following state requirements for reopening.

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Back to School or Distance Learning?

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It’s hard to believe it’s already August. If you’re a parent like me, that means that pretty soon, if you haven’t already, you’re going to need to decide whether to send your children back to school, do distance learning this fall, or some combination. I’m not going to lie and tell you that it’s a simple decision. It’s complex and depends on many factors: your child’s age, any high-risk conditions they or other people living in your household have, the current level of COVID-19 in your local area, your own ability to do distance learning and/or your child’s needs for on-site services, and how prepared your school is to protect your children from the spread of COVID-19.

In this week’s post, I’m going to review the available evidence, prominent expert statements on whether schools should reopen, and share resources to help you make your decision.

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Are you washing your hands correctly?

Image source: https://www.cdc.gov/handwashing/campaign.html

Continuing on with my series on simple steps that everyone can (and should!) take to prevent COVID-19, I’ve reached the seemingly simplest and hopefully least controversial step: handwashing.

Everyone – children, adults, and everyone in between – should be washing their hands frequently every day but especially during the current pandemic to clean germs and dirt off their hands. Teach your children to wash their hands regularly, and remember to set a good example for them by washing your hands regularly as well! You are the most important influence on your children, and if they notice you not washing your hands then you’ll send them a clear message that you don’t believe handwashing to be important, regardless of what you might say.

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Even more proof that masks work

I’m back at it again with the early updates, but this news was too good not to share: the CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report published a case summary today of two hair stylists with COVID-19 who served 139 clients while both the stylists and clients wore face masks, and not one client got infected. This is tremendous news that once again reinforces that face masks work to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

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