Buzz
The scientific progress on COVID-19 has been unprecedented, with researchers going from identifying the virus to initiating vaccine trials in just three months. Despite this rapid pace, there’s still much we don’t understand about the virus. No matter how thorough lab studies are, we can't predict every aspect of its global spread. This is an entirely new pandemic, and the only way we’ll truly understand it is through experience.
But the desire for answers remains strong. We all want to grasp the true fatality rate, uncover its origins, determine the exact amount of social distancing needed, and assess the likelihood of infection for ourselves and our loved ones.
This creates a significant gap between our questions and the answers we have. That gap is being filled by a mixture of information. Genuine news and early scientific findings trickle in, but they’re just drops in the vast ocean of our curiosity. The rest is filled with speculation, theories, and uncertain predictions—opinions, mathematical models, and the instincts of health experts. Political agendas, conspiracy theories, and perhaps even unnoticed flashes of brilliance are also part of the conversation.
In the age of COVID-19, distinguishing between accurate information and misinformation is more challenging than ever, but also more crucial. At Mytour, we typically avoid covering speculative or unreliable information unless it's widely circulated, in which case we step in to debunk it. However, given the widespread uncertainty, we’re opting for a new approach for now.
That’s why we’re launching a series of Monday open threads where you can share what you’ve encountered recently. We’ll have a discussion here—I’ll offer my personal thoughts if you’re interested—and then the Mytour team will use this dialogue to guide our coverage throughout the week.
To kick things off, here are a few things I’ve encountered recently:
A few weeks ago, there was a warning that ibuprofen might not be safe for treating fevers in COVID-19 patients. However, that warning wasn’t backed by clinical evidence and wasn’t supported by any major organizations as an official recommendation. Despite this, many people sent it my way. I chose not to cover it on Mytour, though I was torn at the time: the evidence wasn’t there, but should we have discussed why it seemed plausible and how unsupported it really was? I hope people didn’t rush to pharmacies to buy Tylenol when their current medication was likely safe, based on what we know.
Recently, there’s been a lot of debate about whether the advice against wearing masks was a mistake. A recent opinion piece in the Washington Post suggests that we should all fashion masks from old T-shirts. I’m currently working on a post exploring the pros and cons of fabric masks, but I believe this is a complex issue. Medical masks are in short supply and must be reserved for healthcare workers and those with medical needs. Fabric masks are not considered personal protective equipment (PPE) for healthcare staff. And there’s conflicting evidence on the effectiveness of fabric masks in real-world situations. (Plenty of lab tests, but few studies of real-world use.) Personally, I’m not planning to wear one, but I understand why it’s a topic of discussion.
In some areas, hospital parking lots and waiting rooms are empty. Apparently, there’s a movement (primarily from one side of the political spectrum) encouraging people to document the emptiness to argue that the overwhelmed healthcare system is a hoax. However, these hospital spaces are empty for a far more straightforward and logical reason: non-emergency procedures have been canceled as the CDC advises healthcare facilities to limit patient access unless absolutely necessary. Many hospitals have also reduced or eliminated visiting policies. This is a social distancing measure, and also a way to manage the healthcare surge that is already happening in some areas and expected in others.
These are just three of the many stories circulating that stand out as important to discuss, but ultimately, they are too complex for a simple “we should” or “we shouldn’t” response.
Now, we’d love to hear from you. What have you come across about the coronavirus (or related topics) that has made you curious? What’s got you excited, worried, eager to discuss, or maybe even tired of hearing over and over again? If something you've read has made you think, “Hmm, maybe I should change something in my life now that I know this,” we’d be interested to hear your thoughts.
Update 4/1/2020: We accidentally linked this article on masks from Wired instead of the one we intended to link from the Washington Post. Both are worth reading. The link is now corrected.
