Published on 2021-10-01 by daigl073
Images of a Chameleon Danced in Her Head: Reflections as we approach the 2-year mark on the COVID-19 pandemic
On December 31, 2019, my colleagues at the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy (CIDRAP) published a news story about an unexplained pneumonia outbreak in China. Of course, the rest of the story is history and current affairs rolled into one as I write this column. I missed the deadline for my last spring column, then the back-up deadline, then the spring semester was over. My days, evenings, and weekends were consumed by COVID response tasks. I was not alone. This is the experience for most “boots on the ground” public health workers. My spring column was never written. But throughout that time, and even now, an image from one of my past columns would pop into my head – the chameleon. I pulled that column from spring of 2015 and am reprinting it here, followed by my reflections on the past 22 months.
Director’s Column (Spring 2015): The Chameleons of Public Health: Shifting Priorities at a Moment’s Notice
Events of the last six months have me thinking about old world lizards, particularly the types of chameleon that can change color as a means of communication or camouflage. These wonderful creatures show a natural ability to adapt to their surroundings and experiences. Although not as visually stunning, staff in the Health Emergency Response Office, and our campus partners, have had the opportunity recently to demonstrate our adaptation skills responding to Ebola, the first measles case on campus in recent memory, and press accounts of terrorism concerns at a local mall. This work has unique challenges and also highlights some important realities about public health:
We must be ready and willing to respond to the unexpected.
Although annual, monthly, weekly, and daily work plans are important, we must have the willingness and ability to throw them out of the window when needed. This work requires a high level of flexibility and creativity. It also requires a commitment to serving the community when needed, including evenings, weekends, and holidays.
Interdisciplinary teams are as important in public health as they are in medicine.
Whether serving the needs of an individual patient or an entire community, diverse perspectives and experiences are important. Much of our department's work is done behind the scenes. We are extremely fortunate to coordinate a team of colleagues from across the campus. In addition to public health, our team includes partners from human resources, environmental health, housing, health sciences, international travel and students, public safety, communications, and emergency management.
Fear and misinformation among our family, friends, and neighbors is a topic we all should address.
Although the real tragedy of this most recent Ebola outbreak in Africa was centered in Liberia, Guinea, and Sierra Leone; the outbreak had a significant impact nationally and locally. Much of the work to be done here was (and is) related to calming unwarranted fears about disease transmission. For those of us with careers dating back to the early days of AIDS; the questions, concerns, and media coverage felt extremely familiar. Misinformation has also played an important role in the recent unprecedented rise in measles cases in this country as more and more families have opted not to vaccinate their children.
I’d like to close this column by offering my heartfelt thanks to those “behind the scenes” colleagues who have worked so diligently these past several months. Now let’s dig out our old workplans again (at least until the next public health concern comes our way)!
October 2021 Reflections
After reading that column now, 6 years later, I can understand why my brain has been flashing the image of that beautiful chameleon over these last many months. Health Emergency Response Office personnel and our campus partners in Boynton Health, Housing, Dining, Health and Safety, Human Resources, and Communications have certainly been in “adapt” mode as a team. Most impressive, however, is how members of the U of M Medical Reserve Corps (MRC) stepped up to serve our community and the broader community.
MRC members have been “ready and willing” to respond as never before. Here is a sampling of their deployments:
- COVID-19 Testing
- MTest Campus Site
- Ramsey County Site
- Mower County Site
- Community-University Health Care Center
- Pre-Thanksgiving Saliva Testing Event on Campus
- Spring Break Saliva Testing on Rochester Campus
- Rapid Response Saliva Testing Team
- Laboratory Support Team
- Minnesota Department of Health Support
- PPE Technical Assistance
- State Epidemiologist Support
- Case Investigation & Contact Tracing
- EIS Officer Support
- Medical Chart Review
- Healthcare Partner Support
- Command Center Support (MHealth-Fairview)
- Telehealth (MHealth-Fairview)
- Medical Triage (MHealth-Fairview)
- Medical Reconciliation (MHealth-Fairview)
- Boynton Health Entry Triage and Screening
- Smileys Clinic Phone-based Outreach
- Boynton Health Case Investigation & Contact Tracing
- COVID-19 Vaccinations
- Campus COVID-19 Vaccination Clinics
- Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHC) Vaccination Clinic Support
- Duluth Campus Vaccination Clinic
- ROTC Campus Vaccination Clinic
- COVID-19 Vaccine Equity Initiative
- Other Community Assistance
- N95 Respirator Fit Testing Strike Team
- Dental School PPE Distribution
- Gopher Grocery Assistance Outreach
This list is truly impressive and inspiring. Nearly all of our MRC deployments in response to COVID-19 have involved interdisciplinary teams as highlighted in the 2015 column. And, of course, the power of misinformation and fear has been, and continued to be, on center stage.
As I did in 2015, I’d like to close this column by offering my heartfelt thanks to those “behind the scenes” and also those “on the frontline” colleagues who have worked so diligently since January 2020. I am so thankful to be a member of this glorious army of strong, dedicated, skilled, and caring chameleons…