More than 6 million have died of COVID-19 worldwide: Massachusetts doctor discusses these numbers
Updated: 6:25 PM EST Mar 7, 2022
HERE TO ANSWER YOUR QUESTIONS IS DR. RICHA TANDON, CHIEF OF INFECTIOUS DISEASES AT MOUNT AUBURN HOSPITAL. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR BEING WITH US, DOTCTOR. DR. RANDON: THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME. BEN:T IIS A STAGGERING NUMBER, ESPECIALLY SINCE MANY EXPERTS BELIEVE IT IS AN UNDERCOUNT. BUT DOING THE MATH WITH THE NUMBERS WE HAVE, THAT MEANS ONE OUT OF EVERY 1300 PEOPLE AROUND THE WORLD HAVE DIED FROM COVID-19 SINCE THE START OF THE PANDEMIC. TWO YEARS AGO. SO HOW DOES THE DEATH RATE IN THIS COUNTRY, THE U.S., COMPARE? DR. RAND:ON SO YES, INDEED, “STAGGERING” IS A GOOD WORD FOR IT. THE U.S. HAS REPORTED MORE COVID-19 DEBTS THAN ANY OTHER COUNTRY, 968,000,ND A THE CDC ACTUALLY ESTIMATES THAT THE DEHAT TOLL ACTUALLY MAY BE 32% HIGHER THAN WHAT IS REPORTED. ERIKA: WELL, DR. TANDON, AS YOU KNOW, COVID NUMBERS ARE DECLINING, AND HAVE BEEN FOR WEEKS NOW. WE ARE STARTING TO HEAR PUBLIC HEALTH OFFICIALS USE THE WORD “ENDEMIC” MORE FREQUENTLY W.NO HOW IS AN ENDEMIC DIFFERENT THAN A PANDEM?IC DR. TANDON: THAT IS THE MAIN QUESTION ON EVERYBODY’S MINDS. PANDEMIC IS A WIDESPREAD INFECTIOUS DISEASE OVER A COUNTRY OR THE WORLD AT A PARTICULAR TIME, AS WE SAW WITH COVID-19, AND WHEN ENOUGH PEOEPL TGE INFECTED, OR WHEN ENOUGH PEOPLE GET IMMUNITY,IT EHER THROUGH NATURAL INFECTION OR VIA VACCINATION, IT TENDS TO GO TO AN END AND MAKE,O S DURING AN AND DIMMICK, A CONSTANT PRESENCE IN THE VIRUS IN THE COMMUNI,TY IT IS NOT AS WIDESPREAD, IT CAN BE BETRTE CONTAINED, AND IT IS TNO SPREADING OUTF O CONTROL, UNLIKE A PANDEMIC, WHICH IS PUTTING STRESONS HE T HEALTH CARE SECTOR, AND THEN WE CAN MORE EASILY PREVENT IT AND TRTEA IT, JUST LIKE THE FLU VIRUS HAS NOW BECOME ENDEMIC, AND WE THINK THE CORONAVUSIR WILL BTHE AT WAY, UNFORTUNATELY. BEN: LET’S GET TO SOME OF THESE QUESTIONS FROM VIEWERS. THE FIRST ONE IS FROM RITA SHE WANTS TO KNOW, IS THE FLU SEASONVER? O IT IS STILL ONLY MARCH HERE, BUT WHATO D YOU SAY, DOCTOR? DR. TANDON: THAT IS A GOOD QUESTION. WE HAVE SEEN A DROP IN FLU CASES. IN MASSACHUSETTS, A DROP FROM THE BASELINE OF 2%, HOSPITALIZATIONS HEAV DROPPED, TOO, AND THIISS WHERE THE COMMUNITY CAME TOGETHER, EVERYBODY WAS HAND WASHING STAYING HOME WHEN THEY WERE SICK, NOT JUST KEEPING CHILDREN HOME WHEN THEY ARE SK,IC BUT DEFINITELY THERE HAS BEEN A DECREASE IN THE FLOW RATE AND HOPEFULLY WE ARE AT THE TAIL END OF IT NOW. ERIKA: WE ALSO! — WE HOPE SO! ANY GOOD NEWS, WE WILL TAKE. HERE IS ANOTHER ONE, THIS TIME FROM JAKE. CAN YOU GET INFECTED BY THE SAME VARIANT TWICE? DR. TAND:ON YES, THAT IS ANOTHER GREAT QUESTION. IT IS CERTAINLY POSSIBLE. SCIENTISTS HAVE INFORMED THAT THERE IS A NEW SUBVARIANT OF OMICRON, WHICH IS MORE CONTAGIOUS, ESPECIALLY FOR PEOPLE WHO PREVIOUSLY HAD OMICRON. ANY MARJO WAYS, AND IT IS DEFINITELY, YOU KNOW, WE ARE CONTINUING TO SEE A DROP, SO IT IS NOT DRIVING THE INFECTIONS UP.
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More than 6 million have died of COVID-19 worldwide: Massachusetts doctor discusses these numbers
Updated: 6:25 PM EST Mar 7, 2022
Dr. Richa Tandon of Mount Auburn Hospital talks about national and global COVID-19 death numbers. She also discusses the idea that COVID-19 could be endemic.
Dr. Richa Tandon of Mount Auburn Hospital talks about national and global COVID-19 death numbers. She also discusses the idea that COVID-19 could be endemic.
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