Patience was never one of my virtues, as I have stated so many times in past posts. I think I am even more impatient now. Each day feels like it is 100 hours. By the time you finish notes, answer phone calls, and deal with all the emails; you are exhausted. Truthfully, we have just begun this battle with COVID-19. It is touching every person I know. Patients are talking about friends and family members who have lost someone from the complications of this virus. They are young and old. Many of my patients are African American. It is affecting our staff and family members of our colleagues.

I am not sure what the toll of this virus will be on our community, but if you read the experts, it will be extensive. We were dealing with health care disparities and lack of primary care to meet the medical needs of African Americans, Latinx, and Native Americans before COVID-19. Now, it will become more apparent about the lack of primary care for these vulnerable populations. The Emergency Rooms are not the place to go currently. People need to be able to reach out to their primary care doctors to get guidance and help them navigate how to care for themselves at home. That is all I did this morning. I arranged for a patient who is a high risk to get tested. She should not be in an ER but only need to do the drive-in testing. For the drive-in testing, you need an appointment, which would mean having a primary care doctor to get a referral. Some sites do not require a doctor but do require you to schedule an appointment.

My highpoint came during dinner because my husband made my favorite fried oysters. I ate my oysters during a 7 pm Zoom meeting with URM Scholars. We had a very productive meeting. I marvel at their resolve to complete this manuscript for submission while dealing with the reality of being primary care providers during this challenging time. Well, I will rest and get ready for tomorrow.

I find hope in the darkest of days and focus in the brightest. I do not judge the universe.

Dalai Lama