Covid Vaccines and Global Cooperation

 It is easy to sit back on the sidelines and ask why it is taking so long for the world to come up with the Covid-19 vaccine, but this task is bigger than one can imagine. There are many obstacles, globally and locally, that we need to overcome in order to effectively produce and distribute a Covid-19 vaccine. One way that producing and delivering the Covid-19 vaccine is a global endeavor is the question of who gets it first. Sure, we would like to think that the vaccine will be made by the billions, enough for everyone to get one, but that is unfortunately not the case. Countries are going to have to assess and decide who is at the most risk and who could wait a few months or even years to be able to have the vaccine. Additionally, there are many vaccine trials going on all over the world. I have heard of at least 3 happening here in the United States, so another issue that has to be tackled is which vaccine that is currently in the trial will be deemed the "best" and which company/country will have to take on the responsibility of having the world's first Covid-19 vaccine ready for mass production and distribution. Besides the obvious players, there are many important roles that would have to be filled in order to make this distribution possible. For example, transporting the vaccine across the globe would require various types of transportation methods such as boats and planes, both of which would require certain environmental conditions to host the vaccines. As stated in the New York Times article titled How To Ship a Vaccine at -80 degrees C, and Other Obstacles in the Covid Fight, most vaccines would have to be kept at extremely low temperatures, a huge task to do for millions and millions of vials on boats, planes, trucks, etc. Besides environmental conditions that would have to be met, the race for the world's first coronavirus vaccine has become a competition of fame and money. Whichever country is the first to create a vaccine will receive huge compensation as well as have the stigma of being the "smartest". This competition can lead countries to lose sight of what is actually important: finding a vaccine to help the public. Lastly, being able to produce millions of vials is not easy, and it certainly won't take as fast as the world wants it to be. The logistics of how to produce 300+ million vials of this vaccine means that it could take months, or even years, to be able to produce enough vaccines to be globally ready. The world is already running tight on PPE and basic medical supplies, so manufacturing hundreds of millions of vials of this vaccine during an already strained healthcare system is going to be a huge obstacle. 

Football is Back! A Sense of Normalcy

 

Last Saturday I was able to go to the first home football game of the season! Being able to go to the game brought back a sense of normalcy, something I have not felt since late March! Even though we had to wear masks and be socially distant, it was so much fun just being in the atmosphere and getting to do a fall tradition! It was kinda odd seeing how empty the stadium was and not seeing the parking lot full of people tailgating, but it was overall still a very fun day and a good game! 

Covid and Classes: A College Student's Perspective

 Online education has been such a touchy subject for the last couple of months. The debate on whether online learning is the best option for students of all ages has been one that has caused a lot of divides and typically has brought on even more confusion for the ones impacted the most: the students. Since I have experienced what online education has brought on the first hand, I believe that I am informed and educated enough to decide that online education has not provided an equal opportunity for learning during Covid-19. First of all, there is no set curriculum or way teachers should be teaching via online formats, so there is no consistency in our education system right now, which is causing some students to fall further behind than others. Not only is there no consistency from state to state or school to school, it even comes down to teacher to teacher. I personally am taking 5 different classes right now through The University of Kentucky and all 5 of my professors are approaching online learning completely differently. This has caused me to have confusion about which class is doing what and I have found myself feeling more lost than ever. Besides the teaching styles being different, online learning is not providing an equal opportunity for learning because some students can not learn through a screen. I am a physical learner. I need physical textbooks, notebooks, a pen, and a pencil. Online education does not provide me with the opportunities I need to be able to fully understand the material being presented to me. I know that I do not have the worst situation though, some students do not even have access to the internet or a computer to join in on zoom classes. This creates a huge learning deficit that can not be repaired, especially for younger students who are in critical learning years right now. 

Additionally, I do believe that there should be a hardship clause for students impacted by Covid, but I believe there should be an extent to which this is given. I have always been a straight-A student, but with covid I have found myself struggling more than usual in my classes. This has not come from a lack of effort or motivation, it is purely because I have to adapt to a different education style than what I have been used to for the last 14 years of my life. So, for students like me or similar to me, there should be a bit more leniency for students who are genuinely struggling to adapt. On the other hand, there are some students that would take advantage of the situation and not put any effort in and know that they can just blame it on covid. I understand that it would be very difficult to differentiate between the two situations so it would make it difficult to ensure fairness, but it is something to consider. 

Lastly, I do not think that I will be any less competitive in the job market because of Covid. I believe, if anything, potential employers would see my resilience and dedication through covid to continue my education despite the circumstances. 

Seasonal Allergies during Covid-19: An Observation

 I have noticed throughout the last couple of months that if you are sick with something besides covid and you go out in public and sneeze or cough, people feel the need to say "don't worry I don't have covid!". I personally always get really bad seasonal allergies and this year more than ever I have noticed that my allergies have been so much worse. I believe it is because I have moved states being from Illinois and now coming to Kentucky for school, but it has caused me to cough and sneeze a lot more than I normally would. I know that when I do cough or sneeze that it is only my allergies because I have had allergies my whole life, but to others in public who may be around me, they do not always know that it is just my allergies. This has caused me to always say out loud "it is just my allergies, not covid" because I do not want people thinking I am sick with covid and that I am going to spread it to others. One of the most common places that I notice I get starred at if I cough or sneeze is in the grocery store. While I do understand why people may be alerted when they hear someone who seems sick, it has almost put a pressure on me to hold in my sneeze or cough if I feel it coming in public so that I do not get judged. Although I do not have a picture of me personally coughing in public since covid, this picture is an accurate representation. 

UK Core Issue: How Do We Distribute Covid Vaccines?

If I had to distribute vaccinations for Covid to Fayette County residents but only had enough vaccines for 1/3 of the population, I would first determine who is at the highest risk for Covid-19. My priority for who gets the vaccine will be for those who are in the high-risk category meaning they have some underlying or preexisting condition that would heighten the effect of Covid. This may include people of all age ranges as well as all sorts of preexisting conditions. The top priority would go to those who have two or more preexisting or underlying conditions. Secondly, after those who are at high-risk are vaccinated, I would next have healthcare workers who are working on the frontlines of Covid-19. My reasoning why I would choose this group of people to get vaccinated next is because if they get sick and die from Covid, then we will not have as many people who are able to treat the rest of the population if they fall ill. Additionally, these workers are coming in contact with Covid-19 every single day and it is important that they do not spread this virus to others in the community even after they leave work. It is important to note that I do not believe all healthcare workers should be vaccinated first because there are some in the healthcare field that does not come in contact with Covid unlike how others do and therefore should not be placed in the priority list. My last group of the population that I would give the remaining vaccines is to essential employees, particularly ones who can not work from home. An example of an essential employee that I would give the first round of Covid vaccinations is to those working at grocery stores. These employees are not able to stay home, no matter what the condition of the virus is like, and they are also the ones who are touching and stocking the shelves with food. This means that if one grocery store employee has Covid, then not only are they risking infection to their coworkers, but to anyone that may buy the food that they touched. 

Covid and Pop Culture

Although this pandemic is not the first to ever exist, it is one of the first to exist during a time where communication and social media is so widely used. And since social media has become the center of many's lives, it is no shocker that social media has influenced how some have viewed Covid-19. At the very beginning of covid, many of my peers (18-21) took part in creating covid memes. These memes took form on many apps such as Instagram, Twitter, but most popular, TikTok. The TikTok community made many of these video clips making fun of quarantine or covid, many of which went viral and would get up to a million likes. An example of some popular covid TikToks can be seen here. Most of these videos are of people who are overdramatizing covid by wearing hazmat suits around the house alone or joking about the scarcity of toilet paper or cleaning products. These videos, especially during the beginning of quarantine, have brought light to such a sensitive and serious topic, which has allowed for many of my peers to relax in the midst of all the stresses covid has brought on. Also, I believe that these TikToks that have been made regarding coronavirus have been a coping mechanism for my generation. Since most of my peers (including myself) have had major life events canceled such as high school or college graduation, being able to laugh about covid and in a way make fun of it is a way to deal with the emotional trauma that covid has left people with. 

Another Tik Tok example that has originated outside of the US is the "ghen cô vy" TikTok. This dance, originated from a popular Vietnamese pop song "Ghen" became a "dance challenge" on TikTok which encouraged people to wash their hands properly and often. This dance was created by two Vietnamese TikTok influencers who go by the name Quang Dang. This is yet another example of how popular culture and social media have taken topics regarding Covid-19 and brought light to them. 

Meat Shortages during Covid-19

 One of the many shortages America and the world experienced during the beginning months of Covid-19 was a meat shortage. I remember coming home one day to our kitchen and garage freezers stocked full of all sorts of meats because everyone was afraid we would run out of meat. My dad went out and bought hundreds of dollars of groceries, many of which included different meats, because he feared that he would not be able to feed me, my brother, and my mom. The fear of not having enough meat to get by caused enough people to go out to the stores and to wipe the shelves virtually clean. This instilled more fear and caused many people to drives hours just to be able to have enough food to feel comfortable. Although there was a shortage of meat, this shortage was short-lived and my family ended up having more than enough meat to keep us fed for weeks. Although the food never went to waste, this was a good lesson to learn that when we are in panic mode, all logical thinking goes out the window and people live off fear. In this case, my dad feared that he would not be able to feed his family, so he went above and beyond to make sure that there was no chance that would happen. I believe some of this was motivated by the idea of control. Much of covid has obviously been out of our control and the idea that my dad could control how much food we could or could not have caused him to go the extra mile. The photo attached was taken by me and it is a picture of our freezer during the meat shortage scare in the midst of Covid-19. 

Weekend Safety Reminder Texts 9/11/2020

 Aside from our daily texts to report out daily screening, The University of Kentucky sends out mass texts every Friday to remind students to take precautions even during the weekend. I hope that these texts remind students to do their part to keep us on campus for as long as possible, especially since the campus cases have been rising due to unsafe large-crowd gatherings. The picture above is an example of the weekly texts students receive. 

Covid-19 School Vlog!

 

I'm sorry that I was fixing my mask so much, it is big on me!

I hope you enjoyed seeing what a typical school day for a freshman at The University of Kentucky looks like during Covid-19! This is what the majority of my school days look like since most of my classes are fully online or hybrid!

COVID-19: Who Do I Trust?

When it comes to Covid-19, it is very hard to know who to trust and who not to trust in regards to getting information. Personally, I usually turn to the CDC (Center for Disease Control) or WHO (World Health Organization) to inform myself of the latest guidelines and updates. Since the media has been very inconsistent about what information is presented and how it is presented, I have decided to not get my information from the news or any social media platform. I do not trust that any news source is giving factual, unbiased information, so for that reason, I have stopped watching the news. Since being at UK, I have been getting most of my updates through the university. My family, on the other hand, are firm believers in watching the news to get their information. Before coming to UK, various different news channels were constantly on at my house. Especially during the very beginning of quarantine, my family and friends would watch every daily briefing from the president and our state governor. Hearing the debates on what to do and what not to do in regards to COVID was exhausting and drove me away from the media. 

Overall, the way the media and others have politicalized COVID has made me lose my trust in the media. The divide in the country because of this pandemic, in my opinion, is more dangerous than the actual pandemic itself. As seen in the picture above, this pandemic has been completely politicized. The two parties have differentiating opinions on how COVID should be handled, resulting in a divided country. This divide has been enhanced by the media and faulty information that has been put out. 

The University of Kentucky and COVID: A Student's Observation 8/28/2020

Since the beginning of the Covid-19 breakout, I never pictured myself being able to go back to school in-person. Especially when the second wave hit in the summer, I thought school would have been fully-online for sure. But, when the University announced we were going to return to campus, I was honestly shocked. Bringing 30,000+ students from all around the country, even the world, to one small campus in the middle of a global pandemic did not seem possible to me. I thought for sure we would be sent home just days after arriving, especially because other universities around the country were shutting down left and right. But one thing surprised me about UK: how much the students care. Every day I walk around campus and I very rarely will see anyone without their mask on. Students are routinely practicing the daily 4.0, which includes wearing a mask, washing your hands, practicing physical distancing, and completing your daily screening. But the students are not just doing this because they are being told to, they are doing this because they want to stay on campus as long as possible.

With all of that being said, the virus does not care how much we want to stay here, all it cares about is doing its job: spreading from person to person. The spread is inevitable on a campus with 30,000+ students and while I feel as if UK has done a very good job of controlling and slowing the spread, college kids are always going to be college kids. Were going to be tempted to gather in larger crowds or "forget" to put on our mask. And while it may not be everyone, one small group can ruin it for the others. That is why I think UK will have to switch all classes to be fully-online before the end of the semester. It is almost impossible to keep a virus of this magnitude controlled in such a densely populated area. Also, many of my professors seem to already be preparing for the classes to go fully-online. For example, my college algebra class was originally placed as a hybrid course but my professor has since decided to run the course via zoom for now so that we are better prepared to switch to a full-online semester if needed. This makes me believe that the possibility that UK does not switch to fully-online before the end of the semester is low. 

As much as I want to remain in my few in-person and hybrid classes, I do not want to get my hopes up when we are dealing with such unpredictable times.  I mean who knows what can happen, I surely never thought we would make it this far, let alone be able to come to campus. But, as far as I can tell, everyone here at The University of Kentucky is trying their hardest to stay safe and stay here for as long as possible. 

Get to know me! 8/21/2020

Hello! I am Jenna Gottfried, a current freshman at the University of Kentucky. I am from Lake in the Hills, Illinois which is an hour northwest of Chicago. I am an 18-year-old Caucasian female and I have been raised by a family in the working/middle class. I am 40% German, 20% French, 20% Italian, and 20% a mixture of other European countries. My mom is an insurance coordinator for a dentist's office and my dad is a foreman electrician. All of these factors have shaped how Covid-19 has affected my family and me. 

With my mom working in a health-care facility, she was considered an essential employee and was not able to work from home. Additionally, the state of Illinois deemed construction/electrical workers as essential which meant my dad was also not able to stay home. Both of my parents are considered high-risk to Covid-19 because they both have asthma and my mom has heart disease. Knowing this and having to see them go to work every day terrified me and made me even more cautious about what I would do and who I would see. Besides my parents, my grandparents on both sides of my family are also all immunocompromised for a variety of reasons including heart disease, being on dialysis, etc. This has put a huge strain on our family because before COVID, my family was constantly with each other. Not being able to see my extended family as regularly as I'm used to has changed my communication with my grandparents. My mom and I actually went out and bought my grandparents' iPhones so they can use the FaceTime app as well as text us faster. 

Additionally, the financial burden that Covid-19 has presented has put stress on my academic career. I was working as a part-time employee for my local elementary school when COVID shut my work down in March. Little did I know, I would not be returning to work until early July. Being out of work for nearly 4 months resulted in a huge loss of money that would have gone towards my college tuition. This has put extra stress on my family to make up for the money lost. As a result, I almost considered taking a gap-year from school in order to give my family a break.

Speaking of school, I can now say that I was one of many who graduated high school in the midst of a global pandemic. Not being able to have the traditional graduation I dreamed of my whole life was heartbreaking, but my district rose to the occasion and made graduation special for all of the 2020 seniors. My graduation ceremony took place in late July in a large parking lot. Half of the alphabet had the morning ceremony and the other half had the afternoon ceremony.  There was a large stage set up at the back of the parking lot and cars filed in and parked facing the stage. Each graduate was allowed 1 car so my immediate family and my four grandparents all packed in. I was able to walk across the stage with my mask on and receive my diploma. The picture above is right before I was set to walk across the stage. Although a mask was required, I am so fortunate that my school prioritized some "normalcy" for seniors and made sure we were able to walk across the stage. The class of 2020 will really never be forgotten!

Although my family has definitely not had it easy since COVID, the overall impact for us has been less than others around us. For example, up until I left for college in mid-August, no one in my family had known of anyone who had Covid-19. We were very fortunate to not see the effects of Covid-19 firsthand. Since I am a pre-nursing major, being able to follow how Covid-19 has impacted the medical field has made me even more eager to eventually be apart of the medical field myself. Seeing how all the health-care providers have stepped up and put their lives at risk every day just to be able to save someone else's has truly sparked a fire in me to one day do the same and to give back to all those risking their lives today.