What we realized about COVID in 2022 and what to anticipate in 2023

DENVER — One other 12 months is placing us farther from the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, as 2022 offered extra options. Chief medical officer Dr. Jaya Kumar at Denver’s Swedish Medical Heart has been on the forefront of this virus since its inception.

“We have seen an evolution, not simply within the virus itself, however in the way in which we consider COVID-19 as an sickness and the way in which we deal with it, the way in which we diagnose it and the way we stay up for the brand new 12 months,” Kumar mentioned. “Now we have now speedy sequencing of viral genomes. So any virus you see, you would sequence it, duplicate it, make a remedy or a vaccine towards it; that’s large.”

She factors to a few of the greatest advances made in 2022.

“We noticed a brand new antiretroviral drug are available like paxlovid, which is a tablet which you’ll give as an outpatient,” Kumar mentioned.

That’s one thing Dr. Scott Pleasure, the chief medical officer of HealthOne’s Doctor Providers Group, says has saved sufferers out of the hospital.

“On a weekly foundation, we’re doing, myself personally, about six to 10 prescriptions of paxlovid per week, and I’ve but to see a affected person whose been admitted actually within the final six months of 2022,” Pleasure mentioned.

The final 12 months has additionally expanded consultants’ data.

“So, for instance, so we’re seeing an RSV or Flu serge. Issues have turn into like a chunk of cake for us. We all know what to do,” Kumar mentioned. “And we had our surge protocol prepared in half-hour whereas this may have taken us hours and hours of laborious work two years in the past.”

Nonetheless, whereas these successes are value celebrating, each medical doctors say it is important to acknowledge the hurdles.

“I feel one of many challenges shifting ahead after the pandemic is sufferers’ belief within the vaccines,” Pleasure mentioned. “I am just a bit involved that vaccines are the tip of the iceberg and are going to begin getting questions on knowledge round most cancers screenings and questioning about ldl cholesterol medicines to cut back danger of coronary heart assault and stroke and I feel we have opened up just a little little bit of a pandora’s field.”

Well being care staffing has turn into a problem too.

“I feel the largest problem we have now shifting ahead is admittedly the workforce. I feel that is going to be a giant problem for us within the subsequent 12 months or two,” Pleasure mentioned.

These consultants emphasize that persons are nonetheless not caught up on essential medical exams and screenings, which may result in extra vital well being issues.

“I do assume we have held again, and we’re nonetheless seeing folks are available with advance phases of sicknesses. We nonetheless see folks within the hospitals who’ve postponed medical care,” Kumar mentioned. “I feel we have to do a variety of catching up within the subsequent few years.”

We should pinpoint the place we presently stand with COVID-19 to grasp what’s subsequent.

“The idea of by no means getting COVID is one thing that we have to recover from,” Pleasure mentioned.

“We may probably enter into an endemic stage, however that’ll take a while. An endemic stage is the place you see predictable surges like flu,” Kumar mentioned. “However for now, I feel folks nonetheless have to be on their watch and ensure you are getting your vaccines.”

The years to return will permit us to be extra knowledgeable on the results of the COVID-19 virus.

“We’re nonetheless within the infancy phases of this pandemic. Though it looks like it has been years however long-term results are nonetheless unknown,” Kumar mentioned. “So the following few years, we’ll be constructing upon the expertise, investing extra in primary science analysis, and be higher ready for any extra pandemics that we might even see sooner or later.”