Today is World Mental Health Day. First established by the World Federation for Mental Health in 1992, World Mental Health Day has helped bring mental health to the forefront. Over the years, there has been a growing push to destigmatize mental health, revamp education in the mental health sector, and grow awareness on a global scale. There is a lot to be proud of with the progress we have made collectively; however, there are systemic barriers that have deterred individuals from seeking help:

We are a coalition of physicians and health professionals working to identify and meet the needs of Illinois’ healthcare workers and communities. We engage grass-root networks, advocate for evidence-based solutions, advise influential stakeholders, and amplify solutions that protect the individuals and communities across the state and country.

Picture a high school gymnasium or a local community center, set up to provide Covid-19 vaccinations to large numbers of high school students, aged 16 and older.   Masked students wait in line, chatting with each other, smiling under their masks, and sharing TikTok videos on their phones.  They register with volunteers at computer stations, provide paperwork signed by a parent or guardian, answer a few questions, then sit down at a table with a paramedic, a pharmacist or a nurse who administers a vaccine, then places the used syringe in a red sharps container while each student waits the required 15 minutes. 

The COVID-19 pandemic forced most medical schools to change their curriculum drastically in a very short period of time. Administrators cut in-person clinical training to the bare minimum, and shifted much of typically in-person learning to online learning. At first, most medical students worried that these changes would hamper our ability to learn necessary skills. Specifically, we were worried that the reduced clinical hours would decrease our knowledge.

This week’s announcement from the CDC and FDA to pause the use of the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine is a reasonable measured response and indicates that the government’s health surveillance system is working. Although the pause may come as a surprise, it is a natural part of the scientific and public health processes. If you have gotten a J&J shot already, there is absolutely no reason to panic, especially if it’s been more than 3 weeks since your dose.

Throughout this pandemic, the U.S. workforce has experienced inequities in access to protections related to COVID-19, including PPE, viral testing and health care. We can’t make the same mistake with the COVID-19 vaccine.  To help us do better, employers must be as invested as the health care community and the government in ensuring equitable and responsible access to COVID-19 vaccines for their entire workforce. 

Fellow Illinoisans, we can prevent another COVID-19 surge. Spring break is upon us, and many Americans are traveling. Cases are rising in Illinois and other parts of the upper Midwest. Concurrently, Europe is experiencing a third wave of infections and lockdowns, while some US states are relaxing masking and social distancing policies. We recognize that pandemic fatigue is real, and mental health is important, but together we can prevent another surge in COVID-19 cases here in Illinois.

This past week marked one year since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. A year in, and all of the important numbers continue to trend down in the right direction: case positivity is in the 2% range, bed utilization is down, and deaths are down. Vaccinations are nearing 100,00 per day and continue to steadily increase.

As of Saturday, March 6th, all regions and major counties continue to show a positivity rate under 4.5% for the past week, with the state overall at 2.4%. Although we are in great shape, it is important to remember that the different COVID-19 variants are starting to pop up.

As of Saturday, February 27th the positivity rates, deaths, and hospital utilization all look really good. We are nearing 70,000 vaccinations on average per day. The United Center will soon to become a mass vaccination site, ensuring that thousands more will be vaccinated.

Unprecedented times. The new normal. These phrases became popular at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic and were used to express just how much the pandemic upended our lives. Schools were closed, businesses shut down, and Americans had to learn how to navigate life with stay-at-home orders. Yet for some, life went on.

The numbers continue to drop all around - less testing, lower positivity, deaths, and bed utilization. The current positivity rate is less than 3%. In fact, 9 out of the last 10 days has been below 3% in case positivity, which is a major change from where we were even a few weeks ago.

This past Friday, 95,375 Illinoisans got vaccinated, marking a single day high. There were 103,009 tests and 2,598 newly confirmed or probable cases for a daily case positivity rate of 2.52%, with 32 additional deaths. The last time we had this low of a case positivity rate was on July 21st - a time where we were testing half the amount of people. While the last year has been tough, your efforts have made a huge improvement on our numbers.

As of Saturday, February 6th, nearly 75,000 vaccination shave been administered, with a three-day average of 67,483. With more and more partners joining in on the vaccine rollout, these numbers should continue to increase.

As a pulmonary and critical care physician, I have been treating severely ill COVID patients for over 11 months.  While the experience of taking care of thousands of COVID patients at our hospital and the data we have learned from studies have equipped us to provide better care for these patients, people still die from this disease. Vaccination represents the most effective means to prevent moderate to severe COVID and death due to COVID. As vaccines have become available, I have felt some hope that the medical community can finally prevent death.  Many questions about vaccines remain prevalent, even in the medical community.

In Illinois, vaccinations are now at 50,000 per day consistently. This is a huge improvement from just a few weeks ago, although some regions are doing better than others in vaccination rollout. We are close to another statistically significant decrease in case positivity with 7 of the past 8 days under 5% and 4 of those under 4%. Bet utilization continues to go down, as well as deaths, though they are still too high at the moment.

My patient clutches her side and inhales sharply. As she does, her mask slides down her face. Her contractions are quickening. The nurse in a gown, faceshield, and two masks gently reminds the patient to place her own mask back over her face. She does not want to think about COVID right now, but even hours before this patient meets her newborn child, she is constantly reminded of COVID.

As of Friday, January 22nd, 99,036 tests were logged including: 82,893 molecular (84%), 10,119 antigen (10%), and 6,024 UIUC molecular saliva (6%). In all, 4,979 newly confirmed or probable cases were recorded for a daily case positivity rate of 5.03% and 123 additional deaths. There has been lots of great movement in the right direction as we head into the latter part of January. Currently, only a small percentage of the population is vaccinated, but as vaccine rollout gets further underway, we expect this decreasing positivity trend to continue.

Recently, I shared with my friends and family that as a healthcare worker, when I have the opportunity to receive a COVID-19 vaccine with EUA (emergency use authorization) from the FDA this year, I planned to do it. (As of the time this is posted, I will have received BOTH of my doses of this vaccine!) I asked if anyone who was ambivalent or opposed to getting the vaccine would share what it was that made them hesitant, and / or which questions they wanted to see answered first. This is the list of questions from my friends and family.

As vaccine distribution gets underway, we now have data to provide about vaccination progress in Illinois. Overall, vaccinations have increased over 92% over the last week and currently 0.80% of Illinois is fully vaccinated. Another 1.92% of the population is partially vaccinated, for a total of 2.77% that have at least received their first dose.