Coronavirus | Penn Today

People wearing face masks chat on the street in Olinda, Brazil

Brazil’s coronavirus crisis

Brazil has become one of the world’s deadliest hotspots for the novel coronavirus, second only to the United States in deaths and infections. Melissa Teixeira, a historian of modern Brazil, shares her thoughts on the nation’s response and challenges it faces in battling the virus.

patient being discharged from covid hospitalization

Web-based platforms provide supporting resources for Penn Medicine staff

As health care professionals continue to rise to the challenge of the COVID-19 pandemic, Penn Medicine has worked diligently, expeditiously, and compassionately to organize resources for frontline workers.

Do COVID-19 patients really have to die alone?

Martha Curley of the School of Nursing spoke about how hospitals can change their visitation policies to allow those dying of COVID-19 to see their family members. “Within a family there may be one or even two people who could understand the significance of being there who could be taught to protect themselves and to go into the room and to be there with the family member,” she said.

Touting criticized study, White House presses FDA to authorize hydroxychloroquine—again

Steven Joffe of the Perelman School of Medicine said, “a reversal [of the FDA’s position on hydroxychloroquine] would be widely seen as bending to the political will of the White House, and the hit to Dr. Hahn’s credibility would be profound.”

Map from 1830s depicting the eastern United States, showing cholera cases with red highlights

Q&A

Cholera vs. flu: Philadelphia’s historical epidemic successes and failures

Philadelphia’s response to the 1918 influenza might be the poster child of how not to handle an epidemic. Timothy Kent Holliday makes the case that the city was well equipped for outbreaks decades and even centuries earlier.

Who gets a vaccine first? U.S. considers race in coronavirus plans

Harald Schmidt of the Perelman School of Medicine said courts would likely strike down any vaccine prioritization model based on race and ethnicity, proposing instead an approach that considers socioeconomic status. “It’s imperative that we pay attention to how COVID has impacted the health of minorities differently; otherwise it compounds the inequalities we’ve seen,” he said.

America has a sick obsession with COVID-19 polls

Damon Centola of the Annenberg School for Communication said people are sensitive to social cues about health-related behaviors, like mask wearing. “It’s so conspicuous because it’s new, and it’s shifting underneath our feet,” he said.

Coronavirus: Wear masks in crowded public spaces, says science body

Paul Edelstein of the Perelman School of Medicine spoke about the effectiveness of face masks in preventing the spread of COVID-19. "There are people without symptoms going about their daily business who are unknowingly breathing out droplets that are carrying the virus," he said. "If they had their faces covered the majority of those droplets would be caught before they can infect other people. Wearing face coverings can help save lives and prevent disabling illnesses."

How blood type may affect your coronavirus risk

Lewis Kaplan of the Perelman School of Medicine said people with a lower risk of contracting COVID-19 according to their blood type shouldn’t get overly confident. "It might mean they have less risk, but if you engage in risky behavior, we don't know just how much risk you need to incur to overwhelm whatever potential protection you might have," he said. "We have no clue."

Elderly person lying alone in hospital bed.

Social distancing and dying alone

COVID-19 has led to drastic changes in how hospitals provide end-of-life care to patients and their families. With strict no-visiting limitations in place in an effort to stem contagion, patients have been dying alone.

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