As Utah crosses the one-year anniversary of fighting against the coronavirus pandemic, local doctors and health officials are reflecting on what they’ve learned. (PHOTO: Primary Children's Hospital)
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah — As Utah crosses the one-year anniversary of fighting against the COVID-19 pandemic, local doctors and health officials are reflecting on what they’ve learned.
As unimaginable as it may seem, the coronavirus case of Jazz star Rudy Gobert wasn’t even a full year ago. It was March 11, 2020, when his positive test was discovered prior to a Jazz game in Oklahoma City.
Right around the same time, local doctors and health care providers were suddenly tasked with formulating and executing a game plan to prevent the spread of a virus they knew very little about.
Doctor Todd Vento, an infectious diseases physician with Intermountain Healthcare, said the lack of information probably lead to some mistakes early on.
“Sometimes folks will interpret that as, ‘Oh, you don’t know what you’re doing,'” he explained. “Well, reality is, we really didn’t. We had a virus that we had never heard of [and] never seen.”
He brings up masks as one example, saying in hindsight, the state and country put themselves in much worse positions in the summer and fall of 2020 by not immediately adopting mask mandates in March.
Additionally, he points out that no one at the time was even thinking about any potential long-term complications from getting the virus.
“Now we find out that [some] people have months and months of symptoms,” said Doctor Vento.
Health officials add that with the tremendous struggles of the past year, it’s easy to gloss over the important lessons that we’ve all been taught. According to Doctor Mark Briesacher, with Intermountain Healthcare, there are a few, although one in particular stands out to him.
“Hand hygiene is by far the easiest and most compelling thing for us to continue to do going forward,” he explains.
Doctor Briesacher believes that people will be much more engaged and aware of how to stay safe for each flu season in the future. Additionally, he thinks it will take less prodding for people to get their seasonal shots.
COVID-19 coronaviruses transmitted from person to person. It is a virus that is similar to the common cold and the flu. So, to prevent it from spreading:
Utah’s Coronavirus Information
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
Utah Coronavirus Information Line – 1-800-456-7707
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Commonly asked questions, World Health Organization