So this is not really related to endocrinology, but my week has been dominated by people asking me for advice on Covid-19. I am not a virologist or an epidemiologist, but I am a pretty sophisticated consumer of medical information and I have some trusted resources that I go to for my Covid info. I thought I would share those today in hopes that they would be helpful to you.
For general information, I turn daily to my state and county health department websites. I am lucky to live in New York where there has been regular adoption of the most recent evidence-based recommendations. Both our Governor’s Office and the State Department of Health contain detailed information about testing, cases, hospitalizations and ICU bed availability as well as resources about vaccine availability (so slow going right now).
However, because there is variation in guidance and regulations from state to state, I encourage you to get to know your own state department of health website and consider signing up for updates if they are offered.
For raw data I head over The Washington Post. They track several Covid statistics including cases, testing rates, hospitalizations, ICU admission and now vaccination rates by state and in some cases by county. All of it is available for free, no subscription necessary.
If you are looking for information about risk and weighing the pros and cons of say having a meal in a restaurant or getting on a plane or sending your children to school in person, you can’t do better than Emily Oster’s newsletter. An economics professor at Brown University, she dives deep into the latest data and provides a summary in understandable language. She is also conducting a massive project looking at Covid-19 transmission in schools.
Another great resource for parents is Dr. Kelly Fradin’s Advice I Give My Friends and her book Parenting in a Pandemic. Dr. Fradin is a former school pediatrician who share’s general advice for parents of young children, but who has turned to helping us think about the risk and benefits of attending school in person, going to the playground or having a playdate.
As advised by many, I limit my news consumption and I don’t get my news from social media and recommend the same to all of you. With a few trusted resources I feel I have the information to make informed decisions for myself and my family without falling down the Covid-19 rabbithole.
The Endocrinologist Is In 