Overview

Pandemic Voices sheds light on previously unheard or overlooked international perspectives of patients and health care and community services workers through unprecedented access to some of the most challenging moments of the COVID-19 pandemic: the innovations, the stories of lives saved, those of lives lost, and the prices paid. Divided into seven thematic sections, the collection chronicles the experiences from the front lines of the pandemic. It highlights the disruptions faced by medical systems and the innovative adaptations that emerged to simply keep them functioning, as well as the pandemic impacts from locations overlooked by global media. The book delves into the profound effects on health care workers and reveals insights into strain on health care systems. It amplifies the voices of individuals who faced unique struggles during the pandemic, such as caregivers for children with special needs or individuals battling addiction, in times when resources were basically non-existent in a chaotic landscape. The collection concludes with a reflection on how history will judge our pandemic-era actions, alongside the hard lessons learned on truth, science, and advocacy throughout these challenging years. In sharing the heartbreaks, the triumphs, and the scars that left none of us untouched, Pandemic Voices assesses what we have been through what went well, what did not in order to learn and, in time, hopefully to heal.

Full Product Details

9781487549343

Table of Contents

Reviews

“Pandemic Voices brings together a collection of deeply personal reflections from health care workers and patients, and how they experienced the COVID-19 pandemic. These stories, coming from different countries, health care systems, and cultures across the world, offer an honest – and unfiltered – look at a health care crisis unlike anything seen before in modern times. Pandemic Voices serves as a testimony to the dedication of health care professionals who faced the unknown on a daily basis, and as a guide to what all of us can learn from this unmatched crisis. The book invites readers to engage with stories that are deeply personal yet evidently universal, reminding us about keeping humanity at the core of care for patients.” -- Jan De Waele, President, European Society of Intensive Care Medicine, and Full Professor, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Ghent University, Belgium “For many of us, the COVID-19 pandemic was a traumatic experience. Health care workers lost people they love, and they saw a new disease ravage their patients and overwhelm the system they work in. This collection preserves the diverse experiences and traumas experienced by those who work in health care, giving us a point of reference as we seek to understand what happened to us, our colleagues and our patients, and to use reminiscence as therapy in order to heal, move forward, and perhaps be better prepared for the next such crisis, should it emerge.” -- David Fisman, Professor of Epidemiology, University of Toronto

Author Information

Laura A. Hawryluck, MD, is a professor of critical care medicine in the Interdepartmental Division of Critical Care Medicine Program at the University of Toronto. Nathan D. Nielsen, MD, is an associate professor in the Departments of Internal Medicine and Pathology at the University of New Mexico School of Medicine.

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