Medical Assistant, Lincoln Street Primary Care Clinic
Interviewed by Rafael Rojas, 1/22/2020
I am a medical assistant over on Lincoln Street Primary Care and things have been running smoothly with our office. A typical day at work can now involve a patient come in who is COVID positive, but thanks to our PPE and our management we’ve stayed clear of any issues. For better or worse, I was out of work at the start of the pandemic recovering from a surgery and came back once all of the new procedure had been set in motion. After twelve weeks away, I returned to work in April. Everything felt very different. We had almost completely transitioned into telehealth appointments, and the patients came back very gradually. I’m thankful that this immediate change was not as bad as I had worried it would be. The time I spent at home was overrun by what was on the news. I saw the disease spread through our cities and the rest of the world, and I was petrified to go back. I’m lucky that I walked back onboard to our office running smoothly. My coworkers did a great job helping me get used to the new procedures, and I soon felt very safe.
What worries me more now is the removal of the COVID-pay policies. It makes me nervous to know that employees will come in with a cough or a cold because they feel like they have no other option. You now have to use up to five days of your time before you can even qualify for short-term disability and workers comp. [note: COVID pay currently only covers COVID infections from exposure at work, according to the current COVID policy.] It’s not fair for people to have to choose between providing for their families and putting their coworkers at risk. There are new precautions being put in place, and the vaccine has given some people a lot of hope, but the pandemic is still affecting all of us and our employee-health policies should remember that.
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While I have still not gotten vaccinated, I have been very good about not leaving my house and risking any exposure to the virus. Every day I go straight to work and back home, and when I need to go to the store, I am always very careful. In a way that’s been a vaccine of its own kind, and I’m proud that it kept me and my family healthy. This new lifestyle and all of the time I get to spend at home has even brought us closer! My son Cassius is only ten years old and I’m already able to spend time with him and teach him how to cook. He’s left-handed, so it’s been a fun challenge to teach him when he holds the spoon and the knife differently than I do. It means a lot to me that I’m able to keep him active by playing board games with him and thinking of other activities to do together. It’s a lot better than how much time he could be spending playing video games.
Cassius is anxious and excited to go back to school. There is a tentative return date for March 15th – depending on how the numbers are. He really misses his friends and teachers, and although he gets to see them over zoom and is doing well in his classes, he misses being there with them. It’s tough because I do want him to go back to being with them in person, but I think it’d be best if they just finished the rest of this school year off virtually. Cassius has learned to do a lot of different chores and the value behind helping around the house. For us, it’s not worth the risk of people getting sick when he’s able to learn such important things at this early age. Although it’s been tough, and it is important for them to go back to being in person, I know that as he grows up, he will be able to look back on this time and find fond memories.