COVID-19 For Dummies E-Book

Edward K. Chapnick

• Herausgeber: John Wiley & Sons
• Kategorie: Fachliteratur
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 308

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2023

Beschreibung

Everything you need to know about the disease, the pandemic, and the future of COVID-19 COVID-19 For Dummies gives you reliable, up-to-date information on what COVID-19 is, how it spreads, how it can be treated, and how to manage long COVID. What is a coronavirus? What is a variant? What should we be doing to protect ourselves and our families from COVID-19 infection? This jargon-free guide answers all your basic questions. You'll also learn the fundamentals of immunology, how vaccines work, and the types of vaccines used for COVID, as well as what we can do to protect ourselves from this ongoing spread. Expert author Edward K. Chapnick explains who is at the greatest risk and what treatments are available, so you can be confident that you have the knowledge you need to stay safe and healthy. * Gain the knowledge to protect yourself and your loved ones from COVID-19 * Understand what vaccines are used for COVID and how they work * Learn how to recognize and manage the symptoms of long COVID * Discover how viruses spread, mutate, and cause illness * Be informed about which treatments work--and which do not COVID-19 For Dummies is a quick crash course for people with COVID-19 and long COVID who want to learn more about how to treat and manage their symptoms. Anyone who wants to know more about this new disease--without wading through all the misinformation--will appreciate this trustworthy Dummies guide.

Leseprobe

COVID-19 for Dummies®

To view this book's Cheat Sheet, simply go to www.dummies.com and search for “COVID-19 for Dummies Cheat Sheet” in the Search box.

Table of Contents

Cover

Title Page

Copyright

Introduction

About This Book

Foolish Assumptions

Icons Used in This Book

Beyond the Book

Where to Go from Here

Part 1: Understanding COVID-19 Basics

Chapter 1: COVID-19 in a Nutshell

Going Over the Basics

Coping with COVID-19

Recovering from COVID-19

Considering the Future of COVID-19

Chapter 2: Uncovering the Science of COVID-19

Getting to Know the Coronavirus Family

Meeting the COVID-19 Variants

Understanding Why COVID-19 Is So Contagious

Surveying the Science of Vaccines

Chapter 3: Examining the 2019 Global Pandemic

Looking at Where It Began: Wuhan, China

Delays in Recognition and Response

Watching the Virus Spread Globally

Tracking the Response to the Pandemic

Walking the Too-Much-Information Line

Tiptoeing into a New Normal

Chapter 4: Evaluating the Pandemic’s Impact on Society

Noting the Economic Fallout

Considering the Pandemic’s Effects on Wellness

Innovating to Counteract Pandemic Challenges

Working and Schooling Remotely

A Look at Healthcare System Impacts

Increased Intergenerational Living

Supply Chain Disruptions, Hoarding, and Shortages

Part 2: Staying Safe and Healthy

Chapter 5: Transmitting COVID-19

Exploring How COVID-19 Is Transmitted

Sorting Through Symptoms

Differentiating COVID-19, the Flu, and a Cold

Knowing When and for How Long You’re Contagious

Chapter 6: Protecting Yourself and Others from COVID-19

Tackling COVID-19 with mRNA Vaccines

Getting Vaccinated

Determining Who Should Get Vaccinated

Continuing to Mask Up

Evaluating Indoor Ventilation and Outdoor Venues

Taking Ongoing Preventative Measures

Chapter 7: Getting Diagnosed

Testing for COVID-19 (How to Scratch Your Brain Through Your Nose)

Responding to a Positive Test

Chapter 8: Getting Treated

Seeking Medical Care

Taking Prescribed Medications That Work

Avoiding Treatments That Don’t Work

Opting for OTC Medication Support

Accepting Hospitalization When You Need It

Riding out the Course of the Virus and Recovering

Chapter 9: Managing Long COVID

Knowing Whether You’re Likely to Develop Long COVID

Managing Long COVID Symptoms

Maintaining Your Health and Keeping Up Your Spirits

Long-COVID and ADA Requirements

Part 3: Accepting COVID-19 Is Here to Stay

Chapter 10: Looking Ahead

Taking In the General Outlook

Monitoring the Mutations

Funding for Future Developments

Ensuring Essential Healthcare Services

Preserving Stability and Preventing Outbreaks

Mitigating Misinformation

Chapter 11: Staying Safe When Working Outside Your Home

An Ounce of Prevention Is Worth a Pound of Cure

Watching Out for Others with COVID-19 Symptoms

Responding to Exposure

Responding to Symptoms While at Work

Returning to Work: The Criteria

Part 4: The Part of Tens

Chapter 12: More than Ten COVID-19 Myths, Busted

COVID-19 Is Just a Bad Cold or Flu

COVID-19 Vaccines Are Risky

You Don’t Need the Vaccine if You’ve Had COVID-19

Masking Doesn’t Protect Against COVID-19

A Negative COVID-19 Test Means You Don’t Have It

Rubbing Alcohol and Disinfectants Cure COVID-19

Rapid Tests Aren’t Effective

You Have to Pay for COVID-19 Tests

COVID-19 Is so Mild Now, It’s Okay to Get It

You Can Catch COVID-19 from a Public Pool

All COVID-19 Treatments Are Created Equal

Chapter 13: Almost Ten Ways Life Changed after COVID-19

Vaccine Innovation

Increased Availability of Telemedicine

Increased Use of Food Delivery Services

Masking in Public

Impact on Mental Wellness

Un-Retiring and Not Retiring

The Great Resignation

Explosion of News Consumption and Misinformation

Chapter 14: Nine Ways to Prepare for the Next Pandemic

Modernize Data Tracking

Improve the PPE Supply Chain

Mass Testing

Maintain Preparations for Surges

Fight Misinformation

Preserve Animal Habitats

Eliminate Live Animal Markets

Improve Overall Health Worldwide

Ensure Funding

Index

About the Author

Advertisement Page

Connect with Dummies

End User License Agreement

List of Tables

Chapter 2

TABLE 2-1 Symptoms of Colds and SARS Viruses

Chapter 3

TABLE 3-1 The WHO COVID-19 Response

TABLE 3-2 COVID-19 Recommendations in 2020

Chapter 5

TABLE 5-1 Differences in Symptoms

Chapter 11

TABLE 11-1 Risk of Exposure to COVID-19

List of Illustrations

Chapter 2

FIGURE 2-1: The spikes of protein on the spherical body of the coronavirus make...

Chapter 5

FIGURE 5-1: The COVID-19 vaccine helps shorten the time period that you’re cont...

Guide

Cover

Table of Contents

Title Page

Copyright

Begin Reading

Index

About the Author

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COVID-19 For Dummies®

Published by: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030-5774, www.wiley.com

Copyright © 2024 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey

Media and software compilation copyright © 2024 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

Published simultaneously in Canada

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Library of Congress Control Number: 2023947192

ISBN 978-1-394-21171-5 (pbk); ISBN 978-1-394-21172-2 (ePub); ISBN 978-1-394-21173-9 (ePDF)

Introduction

COVID-19 For Dummies is here to give you all of the vital information about COVID-19 without conflicting opinions or complex biology lessons. In this book, you can get everything you need to know about COVID-19 in one place — from the way the virus works and details on the pandemic of 2020, to how to protect yourself and others from the disease. And you can even discover insights about what experts think the future holds for COVID-19.

About This Book

What sets this book apart from other books on this subject is that it truly combines history of the 2020 pandemic, the science of viruses, public health and safety, and my own personal stories and thoughts as an Infectious Diseases Specialist. I’ve been on the frontlines of many epidemics, and I was there (and still am) during and after the COVID-19 pandemic swept the world. I take you behind the scenes of the medical world to share lessons, tips, and ideas for how to continue to co-exist with COVID-19 in a healthy way.

I organize this book in the same way that all For Dummies books are organized. That means it includes straightforward and functional chapter titles and headings that tell you exactly what information each chapter and section covers, many bulleted lists and numbered steps to make the information easy to find and digest, and a friendly tone free of lingo and medical jargon.

I also use special formatting conventions to call out certain content:

Web addresses appear in monofont. If you’re reading a digital version of this book on a device connected to the Internet, note that you can click the web address to visit that website, like this:

www.dummies.com

.

Italicized text

means that you are reading a new term or definition.

Words in

bold

highlight a step in a process.

To make the content more accessible, I divided this book into four parts:

Part 1

: Understanding COVID-19 Basics.

This part includes chapters that give you all of the information about how the virus works, as well as historical details about what happened during the 2020 pandemic.

Part 2

: Staying Safe and Healthy.

This part tells you how to prevent the spread of COVID-19 and what to do if you experience symptoms. And in this part, you can also find a chapter dedicated solely to what Long COVID is and how to deal with it.

Part 3

: Accepting COVID-19 Is Here to Stay.

This part details what the world looks like after the 2020 pandemic. Chapters in this part address what to expect going forward in a world that contains COVID-19, as well as how to stay safe at work and in other public places.

Part 4

: The Part of Tens.

The Part of Tens is a

For Dummies

special. This part gives you several chapters that provide bonus lists of (usually) ten tips, tricks, secrets, or other thoughts that you can use to further your knowledge of COVID-19 and contribute to the betterment of public health overall.

Foolish Assumptions

I try not to make assumptions in life, but admittedly, I’ve written this book assuming that you know at least that COVID-19 exists and that you probably lived through the 2020 pandemic. Here are some other possible assumptions:

COVID-19 is somehow currently impacting you personally, or has impacted you in the past — otherwise, you probably wouldn’t be here.

You respect and trust science and medical evidence. (This book is firmly rooted in both.)

You’re probably not a medical professional, but rather, a world citizen looking for a quick and easy read of complex subject matter.

I keep the information and presentation as simple as possible. I leave out any advanced scientific and medical coverage that’s beyond the scope of the book. After all, this isn’t a medical school textbook!

Icons Used in This Book

Throughout this book, icons in the margins highlight certain types of valuable information that call out for your attention. Here are the icons you encounter and a brief description of each.

The Tip icon marks my practical ideas and actions that you can take on all things related to COVID-19. They could be prevention tips, ways to take care of yourself if you’re sick with COVID-19, or tricks for staying up to date on the latest COVID-19 news.

Remember icons mark the information that’s especially important to know. To grab the most important information in each chapter at a glance, just skim through the paragraphs marked with these icons.

The Warning icon tells you to watch out and pay close attention. It marks important information that’s often related to health or medical safety issues. Always read this information!

Beyond the Book

In addition to the abundance of information and guidance related to COVID-19 that I provide in this book, you get access to even more help and information online at Dummies.com. Check out this book’s online Cheat Sheet. Just go to www.dummies.com and search for “COVID-19 For Dummies Cheat Sheet.”

Where to Go from Here

Like all For Dummies books, this book isn’t linear — you can start anywhere and read the chapters in any order that you want. You can even skip some! You don’t need to read all of the early chapters in order to understand the later ones. If you might benefit from information that I discuss elsewhere in the book, I do my best to give you a quick refresher or a cross-reference to another chapter that holds additional information.

If you’re reading this book, I know it’s possible that you or someone you know has COVID-19, and you need the right info right away, so let me offer you this quick-start guide. Turn to

Chapter 7

if you tested positive for COVID-19 and need to know what to do next

Chapter 8

if you have symptoms of COVID-19 and need to know whether you should seek treatment

Chapter 5

if you want to know whether your symptoms indicate a cold, the flu, or COVID-19

Chapter 9

if you’ve already had COVID-19 and recovered, but you’re still experiencing symptoms weeks, months, or even years later

And, of course, you can always check out the Table of Contents and the Index to find the coverage you’re specifically looking for.

Part 1

Understanding COVID-19 Basics

IN THIS PART …

Survey COVID-19 on a personal and global level.

Discover how the SARS-CoV-2 and other viruses in the coronavirus family function.

Get a sense of what happened during the height of the 2020 pandemic.

Look at how countries around the world are currently managing COVID-19.

Chapter 1

COVID-19 in a Nutshell

IN THIS CHAPTER

Investigating the ins and outs of COVID-19

Living in a post-pandemic world

Getting healthy after being sick with COVID-19

Trying to predict COVID-19’s future

In the winter of 2019, an unknown virus started making people sick in Wuhan, China. Within weeks, scientists identified the virus as SARS-CoV-2 and saw it spread beyond Wuhan. The viral infection quickly snowballed into one of the most transformative global events of the 21st century: the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic.

The pandemic wasn’t just a health problem; it penetrated every facet of societies across the world. The pandemic revealed vulnerabilities in healthcare systems, stoked public fears and mistrust of ever-changing public health policies, and caused millions of deaths worldwide. At the same time, people rose up to meet the challenges. Communities came together to support one another emotionally and logistically. Healthcare and essential workers kept medical facilities, stores, and other infrastructure operating, despite enormous obstacles.

As an Infectious Diseases specialist since 1991, I worked through the HIV, H1N1, SARS, smallpox, and Ebola epidemics, and I was also on the frontlines for COVID-19. In this book, I cover the basics of COVID-19, from its insidious beginnings to its widespread ramifications. I also give you my own personal insight and experience as a medical worker during this pandemic.

Going Over the Basics

The amount of information to know about COVID-19 can feel overwhelming because you can find just so much of it out there — plus, some of it changes from time to time, while scientists discover more about the disease.

In this section, I give you a quick glance at the foundation of COVID-19, from the basic science of the virus, to how people transmit it, to uncovering why this virus remains a concern for people worldwide.

MY PERSONAL THOUGHTS ON THE PANDEMIC: WHY SO MUCH ANGER?

The 2020 pandemic was unique, and my personal experience during its run was quite different from my experience during previous epidemics (the Ebola epidemic of 2014, for example). In addition to the normal fear and stress that many healthcare workers (and the general public) felt, I also found that I felt (and sometimes still feel) immense anger, which was a unique emotion for me related to the practice of medicine.

This anger comes from knowing that the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic didn’t have to happen — or, at the very least, didn’t have to happen with the severity it did. I can’t understand or condone how some of numerous individuals and institutions put in place to protect the world’s population against widespread infection ended up utterly failing humanity in 2020 and 2021.

Now, I wish to emphasize that many members of various health, government, and other public institutions and entities went above and beyond the call of duty during this time. However, from my viewpoint, a significant enough minority of people across these entities gave in to fear, ignorance, personal gain, incompetence, political advancement, and pure arrogance. As a result, the world had to face a pandemic that was much worse than it had to be.

I write this book through that lens, and I present a mix of history and science of the virus itself, as well as a retelling and analysis of how the pandemic reshaped people’s perceptions of community, economy, politics, and self.

Recognizing COVID-19 and global responses

COVID-19 is a highly contagious respiratory illness caused by a coronavirus (a large family of respiratory viruses) called SARS-CoV-2. Here’s what the name COVID-19 means:

COVI:

Coronavirus

D:

Disease

19:

2019 (the year it was discovered)

A lot of evidence suggests that the virus started in animals in Wuhan, China, and jumped to humans in late 2019. (If you want to read more about how scientists think that jump happened, turn to Chapter 3.) Although doctors now have several ways to treat the virus, new variants of COVID-19 continue to emerge, making COVID-19 an ever-present global health concern.

COVID-19 affects each person differently. Some individuals experience mild symptoms, such as fever, cough, and fatigue, while others experience more severe manifestations, such as pneumonia, respiratory failure, and in some cases, even death.

Because of the severity of symptoms and the death toll resulting from the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic, most countries’ governments (at country-wide and local levels) enacted public health policies and practices to contain its spread, including

Widespread testing,

which was often available free of charge during the height of the pandemic

Isolation measures

for people who had the disease

Quarantine measures

for people exposed to the virus

Public safety practices,

such as social-distancing and wearing masks

Also, governments and agencies supported the rapid development of vaccines to offer protection against COVID-19.

To read more on the global impact of the pandemic, turn to Chapter 4.

Understanding who’s most vulnerable

Adults over the age of 65 and individuals who have underlying health conditions have a higher risk for contracting and experiencing severe illness or complications from COVID-19. Common comorbidities (conditions or diseases that occur simultaneously with another) that make people more vulnerable to the virus include

Chronic respiratory diseases

Compromised immune systems

Diabetes

Heart disease

Obesity

Additionally, factors such as poverty, inadequate access to healthcare or nutrition, crowded living situations, and language and cultural barriers can also heighten people’s susceptibility to becoming ill with COVID-19.

Grasping the global concern

You’d be hard pressed to find a corner of the globe that COVID-19 hasn’t touched. Maybe some remote villages and isolated tribes have remained unscathed, but for the majority of cities, towns, and villages around the world, COVID-19 became a huge health crisis during 2020 and 2021.

As of this writing, governments, public health agencies, doctors, and scientists have gotten the virus under control enough that the World Health Organization (WHO) no longer considers it a pandemic (meaning it’s an illness spread across many regions around the world at the same time, disrupting public health, the economy, and daily life). Still, you can expect COVID-19 to remain a part of life because

People can easily spread the SARS-CoV-2 virus to each other through coughs, sneezes, or even just talking in close proximity.

International travel allows people from all countries to potentially spread viruses, turning isolated outbreaks into widespread contagion within weeks.

The SARS-CoV-2 virus has the potential to cause severe illness and hospitalizations for some people — and if not managed well, may overwhelm healthcare systems and cause a high number of fatalities again.

Scientists continue to study and find out more about the original virus, and all of the variants that continue to emerge. Future variants may not be responsive to vaccines and prevention.

The truth is, the world will most likely see another pandemic, even if it’s not COVID-19. To discover some of my ideas and suggestions for how countries around the world can prevent and prepare for the next pandemic, visit Chapter 14.

Knowing how COVID-19 spreads

People infected with COVID-19 primarily transmit it to others through aerosol or respiratory droplets that they emit when they cough, sneeze, talk, or breathe on someone else. If you’re infected and in close physical contact with another person, that person may inhale droplets that you exhale.

Additionally, people can contract the virus by having an infected droplet land on their hands and then touching their face, particularly their eyes, nose, or mouth.

Turn to Chapter 5 if you want further detail about how people transmit COVID-19, including information about the difference between aerosol and droplet transmission, how surfaces aren’t the danger that we in the medical community once thought they were, and the characteristics of superspreader events.

Coping with COVID-19

COVID-19 isn’t going anywhere. As of this writing, most people can look at COVID-19 as a minor health concern, but that doesn’t mean people should become complacent. Stay up to date on the latest about symptoms, prevention, and treatment to ensure that the world doesn’t see a repeat of a pandemic like the one in 2020.

In the following sections, I give you information about the basic symptoms to watch for, as well as recommendations on minimizing the spread of COVID-19, getting tested if you think you do have it, seeking treatment, and managing Long COVID if you have to.

Surveying the symptoms

The trickiest part of diagnosing (and treating) COVID-19 may be that its symptoms vary so widely in severity and duration — and they’re often similar to or the same as other illnesses, such as a cold or the flu. Everyone experiences the onset and progression of symptoms, typically appearing 2 to 14 days after exposure, differently; so if you want to lessen your chance of getting severely ill, you must monitor yourself for symptoms and detect COVID-19 as early as possible.

Although many individuals experience mild symptoms, some people can develop severe respiratory and systemic complications. Some common mild symptoms that you may feel if you have COVID-19 are

Congestion

Cough

Diarrhea

Fatigue

Fever or chills

Headache

Muscle or body aches

Some symptoms of COVID-19 are severe enough that they may require you to go a hospital or other medical facility immediately, and include

Bluish lips or face

Confusion or inability to stay awake

Difficulty breathing or shortness of breath

Persistent chest pain or pressure

Persistent dizziness or lightheadedness

Keep in mind, the preceding lists give you only a quick overview. You may find the symptoms and impacts of COVID-19 confusing and sometimes very concerning. To read more about symptoms in detail — including how they compare to symptoms of a cold and the flu — turn to Chapter 5.

Keeping yourself and others safe

Even though COVID-19 is no longer considered a pandemic by the WHO as of this writing, and public health agencies and public businesses have relaxed their masking and social distance policies, you still have many ways that you can prevent spreading or contracting COVID-19. For example, you can

Wear a mask,

especially indoors or in crowded spaces where maintaining adequate social distancing poses a challenge. Masks significantly decrease the chance that you’ll exhale potentially infectious respiratory droplets onto someone else — or inhale their infectious droplets.

Wash your hands regularly

with soap and water for at least 20 seconds — or use hand sanitizers containing at least 60 percent alcohol — to eliminate risks associated with touching contaminated objects.

Improve ventilation

at work, home, or other indoor areas to disperse any viral particles more effectively. The more the air moves, the more germs move away from you.

Get vaccinated.

Vaccines can prevent severe illness, transmission of the virus, and hospitalization.

Stay updated on local COVID-19 trends and guidelines,

and adjust your behaviors based on the best available public health recommendations.

For more ideas, tips, and tricks about preventing yourself and others from spreading COVID-19, visit Chapter 6.

Getting tested

If you’re feeling under the weather, were close to someone who tested positive for COVID-19, or recently attended a crowded event, get tested for the virus. And if you plan to travel or join a big gathering, you can always take a test to make sure that you aren’t going to spread the virus without knowing it.

As of this writing, various tests are available, and each has pros and cons to using them. The COVID-19 tests also have unique ideal times for taking them to achieve the most accurate results. For more information about how each type of test works — and how to choose and use them — visit Chapter 7.

To get tested, you may be able to visit your local health department, community clinics, pharmacies, or your doctor’s office. Many locations offer walk-in appointments, but scheduling your test ahead of time can save you time. Some places even provide drive-through testing, so you don’t even have to leave your car.

If you prefer using a home test, numerous online platforms ship testing kits right to your doorstep. Some test kits give you rapid results within 15 minutes, while others require that you send your sample to a lab by using the provided kit. No matter which method you choose, make sure that you follow the test instructions closely.

Seeking treatment

I cover treatment for COVID-19 in detail in Chapter 8, but here, I’d like to say that getting the right treatment for COVID-19 can make all the difference in your recovery journey. If you have

Mild symptoms:

If you’ve tested positive and have only mild symptoms, you probably can manage your illness at home by isolating, getting plenty of rest, staying hydrated, taking over-the-counter medication, and monitoring your symptoms.

Severe symptoms or underlying health conditions:

You may need to see your doctor for treatment, which may include hospitalization.

The good news is that we in the medical community continue to refine our treatments and therapies while we discover more about the virus. If you suspect you have COVID-19 or are experiencing worsening symptoms, don’t hesitate to contact a healthcare provider for guidance and potential treatment options.

Managing Long COVID

One of the characteristics that sets COVID-19 apart from many other viruses is the length of time that symptoms can last for some people. Even after recovering from your initial illness, you may experience lingering or new symptoms for months — or even years. Living with Long COVID can feel like running a marathon, but remember, you’re not alone on this journey. Many people are navigating the challenges of Long COVID, and like them, you can find strength in community and adaptive routines.

Although you may find managing Long COVID daunting, you can find a wealth of resources and professionals eager to help. Regularly check in with your healthcare provider to discuss symptoms and get advice on managing them. Your provider might recommend physical therapy, counseling, or other supportive treatments to help you regain strength and overall well-being.

If you have Long COVID, remember that every day is a new day. Embrace the support from loved ones and the community at large, and believe in your resilience and capacity to adapt. You’ve got this!

If you or someone you know is living with Long COVID and would like more guidance, turn to Chapter 9.

Recovering from COVID-19

Bouncing back from COVID-19 is a unique journey for everyone, so while you get back on your feet, you have to listen to your body. If you feel tired, take that well-deserved nap. Hungry for some fresh air? Consider short, gentle walks outdoors. Keeping a positive mindset, staying hydrated, and eating nutritious foods can help boost your recovery speed. And if you ever feel overwhelmed, remember to reach out to friends, family, or support groups — they’re cheering for you, and they want to help!

Your post-COVID journey might come with its ups and downs, but every day is progress. Help your progress along by

Staying in touch with your healthcare provider:

They can offer guidance tailored to your recovery and answer any lingering questions. Your healthcare provider is your trusted partner in this process.

Reintroducing daily routines:

Getting back into your normal routine is a great idea, but don’t rush it — take things at your own pace. Before you know it, you’re back to your vibrant self, with a newfound appreciation for health and the small joys of life.

Here are some clues that you may be on the other side of COVID-19. You have

No more shortness of breath or difficulty in breathing.

No fever for at least 24 hours without the use of fever-reducing medications.

Improved energy levels and less fatigue.

No more confusion, as well as having improved concentration and what you feel is a normal mental state.

Reduced or eliminated cough or body aches.

Before returning to work or interacting with others, make sure you read Chapter 7, where I dive deep into the timelines of testing, waiting until you’re symptom-free (or at least your symptoms are improving), and ensuring that you keep others safe during your return.

If you find yourself with a sticky work situation, such as your supervisor pressuring you to return to work when you are not healthy, and need guidance about your federal rights under the Americans with Disabilities Act as it pertains to COVID-19, see Chapter 9.

Considering the Future of COVID-19

Nobody can truly predict the future, of course, but as of this writing, many of us epidemiologists and other health experts have various hopes, expectations, and beliefs regarding a future that includes COVID-19.

Hopes

Health experts are hopeful that SARS-CoV-2, the virus causing COVID-19, will eventually become endemic, as declared by WHO. This means that it could circulate within human populations for years but might become a more regular, predictable, and potentially less severe disease over time, similar to the seasonal flu.

One silver lining of the pandemic continues to serve public health well. Many people have adopted behaviors such as frequent handwashing, mask-wearing in crowded places or during illness, and working remotely. All of these practices can help keep germs at bay.

Expectations

Medical providers expect that vaccines will continue to play a crucial role in protecting the world’s population from COVID-19, similar to annual flu shots. Booster shots will most likely remain a recommended practice because the world will probably have to always deal with new variants while they emerge naturally over time.

The development of the COVID-19 vaccine is also a silver lining. Never before have people in the medical field been able to develop a vaccine for a new illness so quickly. The technology used for the COVID-19 vaccine enables the medical community to make new vaccines much more quickly, including better vaccines for childhood illnesses and perhaps even for some types of cancer. For more on how the pandemic sparked innovations in vaccine and other technologies, flip to Chapter 13.

Beliefs

Medical researchers believe that the key to keeping ahead of COVID-19 involves seeing whether variants are more transmissible or cause more severe disease. As long as governments and public health agencies continue their ongoing surveillance and genetic sequencing, the world can continue to detect and understand these variants, providing new vaccines, early warnings, and current medical data to the global community.

Even though COVID-19 is much more controlled now (as of this writing) than it was in 2020, we in the medical community believe that sporadic outbreaks can happen, especially in pockets of unvaccinated individuals or areas that have limited access to vaccines. The scale and severity of these outbreaks depends on various factors, including the level of population immunity and the nature of circulating variants.

SALUTING THE PANDEMIC HEROES

Despite my description in the sidebar “My personal thoughts on the pandemic: Why so much anger?” in this chapter — where I discuss that governments and organizations didn’t do many things correctly during the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic — I’m incredibly proud of the healthcare workers, first responders, workers in retail and food service, and all of those who couldn’t work from home and who still came to work every day. These people are the true heroes of the pandemic and are the only reason most of us made it through the pandemic at all.

Moving forward

I’ve gathered many lessons that the medical community learned from the COVID-19 pandemic, and I offer suggestions for how the global community can prevent and prepare for the next pandemic. Flip to Chapter 14 to find out more.

And visit Chapter 13 if you want to read more about the ways in which COVID-19 has changed the world. Some of them may be part of your own life now, and others may come as a total surprise.