By Robin R. Ingalls and Helen W. Boucher
The global impact of COVID-19 is almost unfathomable, with an estimated death toll of over 900,000 in the United States alone, and almost 6 million worldwide.
The burden of disease has not been shared equally, as disparities in healthcare, combined with racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic factors have put members of some groups at higher risk for COVID-19 infection, severe illness, and death than others. Indeed, this pandemic has exposed the longstanding health inequities associated with age, class, race, gender, and ZIP code.
Early in the pandemic, the dominant driving emotion was that of fear, but people worked together with a sense of solidarity and this idea that “we’re all in this together.” However, two years later, this is being replaced by fatigue, discord, and impatience for life to return to normal.
As we begin to move toward a new normal where COVID is likely to become endemic rather than epidemic, people are looking to the experts for guidance in the face of uncertainty. However, the messaging is not always clear, and the dissemination of misinformation can cloud judgment.
The COVID-19 response has certainly been burdened by ever changing recommendations, the unavoidable result of learning about a new virus while trying to develop public health guidelines to protect both the individual and the community. Guidelines put forth with a nod toward the public good have sometimes been viewed as being at odds with individual choice and freedom. As a result, mandates for masks and vaccines have been divisive in many communities, resulting in a tension between respecting individual choice and working for the greater good.
But Catholic social teaching informs us that we have a responsibility not only to the individual, but also to family and community, particularly the poor and vulnerable.
In partnership with Jesuit Social Services, Sister Eliza Fernandes of the Religious of Jesus and Mary, director of Centro De Saude Daniel Ornelas Health Center (back right), helps broaden healthcare access to remote communities in Timor-Leste by teaching children standard hygiene precautions and how to safely navigate COVID-19. Photo courtesy of Jesuit Mission: The international development organisation of the Australian Jesuit Province.
As COVID-19 cases drop and restrictions are lifted, we must not lose sight of our moral obligation to protect the vulnerable members of our communities, including those at the extremes of age, individuals who are disabled or immunocompromised, and those from traditionally marginalized groups.
Current data suggest that we will encounter further surges of COVID-19, though the size and timing remain unclear. Likewise, many believe that boosters or annual COVID-19 vaccinations will be recommended, though we lack clarity to support specific recommendations. When the time comes that we are forced again to choose between our individual preferences and the needs of our community, will we be willing to make the sacrifice?
Our vision of a post-COVID world is one in which we examine the systemic conditions that contributed to the disproportionate effects of COVID-19 on marginalized and vulnerable groups, and create a more just and sustainable society. The Jesuit values of education focused on the magis (seeking the more, the better, the greater — for God, not for ourselves), challenges students to be courageous in their actions and unselfish in their service to others.
These values will serve us well as we come out of this pandemic and resume our interrupted lives. Our world must be guided by competent, compassionate citizens capable of sound judgment, able to respond to the needs of their communities in a holistic manner, and committed to social justice.
Robin R. Ingalls, an alumna of the College of the Holy Cross, is a medical doctor, professor of medicine and microbiology at the Boston University School of Medicine, and medical director of the Special Pathogens Unit at the Boston Medical Center. Helen W. Boucher is interim dean, professor of medicine, and chief academic officer at Tufts University School of Medicine; she is also a Holy Cross alumna and serves as the vice chair of its board of trustees.
The featured cover photo (above) is courtesy of Kate Trifo via Unsplash.