Rheuminations: Lessons from 5 Years of COVID-19

In short, COVID-19 didn’t just change how we practice medicine; it changed how we see the world. And as we move forward—still wary, still hopeful—we carry these lessons with us, stitched into the very fabric of our lives. Of course, we don’t know the future course of this pandemic, the long-term sequelae of disease that will only be revealed decades from now, or when a new pandemic will arise. That’s why I save that mask—not just as a potential tool in case there is another shortage, but also as a potent reminder of those strange and scary times that I will always carry with me.

Bharat Kumar, MD, MME, FACP, FAAAAI, RhMSUS, is the director of the rheumatology fellowship training program at the University of Iowa, Iowa City, and the physician editor of The Rheumatologist. Follow him on X (formerly Twitter) @BharatKumarMD.

References

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2. Gianfrancesco M, Hyrich KL, Al-Adely S, et al.; COVID-19 Global Rheumatology Alliance. Characteristics associated with hospitalisation for COVID-19 in people with rheumatic disease: Data from the COVID-19 Global Rheumatology Alliance physician-reported registry. Ann Rheum Dis. 2020 Jul;79(7):859–866.
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