C0VID-19: Social Work Responds

  Travel backwards in time: it’s March, and the world stops for two weeks. We think this new virus, COVID, will be a momentary lapse in our normal lives. Maybe we even get selfishly excited: we can work from home! I can do Zoom calls in my pajamas, take breaks for Instagram if I need to. It doesn’t feel like this is going to be a huge problem, and we hope for the best.    Flash forward: it’s mid-summer, and schools are making the tough decision about what to do for the upcoming school year. Somehow, the virus is still impacting hundreds of thousands of people, and we didn’t see this coming. Can kids learn from home? Can teachers teach remotely? The answer would appear to be “yes,” but at what cost?    First, it is important to recognize that many responses to COVID and how to re-adjust to living amidst a global pandemic come from a place of privilege. How people view the virus, how leaders decide to address the pandemic, and how schools choose to adapt is often...

                Covid has really done a number on everyone, it has changed the way we have lived our lives drastically .  I never thought that the day would come where we would be wearing masks just to do every day mundane activities, like grocery shopping or even going to the gym.  Personally, I have felt the negative aspect of not being able to interact with humans,whether it is with family, coworkers, or even classmates.  The feeling of isolation has been present at times, and I know that it has been difficult at times for me to deal with.   During this pandemic I have had the pleasure of spending more time with my father as we currently reside in the same residence.  My father was diagnosed with paranoid/schizophrenia many years ago and is also recovering from a substance use disorder.  He is very aware of his illness and the importance of being proactive when it comes to maintaining...

      Health Disparities in Chicago As an African American graduate student of social work, I'm aware that my community is at the intersection of two significant health disparities: COVID-19 infection and mortality rates and pregnancy-related maternal mortality. Chicagoland, my hometown, has long-standing issues with inequitable distribution of resources such as employment (primary access to private healthcare insurance) and access to healthcare providers and facilities. These are two of the many significant barriers to healthcare for African Americans in Chicago.    In Chicago, social vulnerability and health risk factors were the focus of research by Kim and Bostwick (2020). The results indicated segregation, poverty, and discrimination affect a community's social vulnerability and risk exposure when faced with a public health crisis such as COVID-19. The researchers compared COVID-19 outcome differences between non-Hispanic African American and non-Hispanic W...

  “During times of crisis, the United States has a history of amplifying discrimination against marginalized groups,”   says Melissa Thompson, MSW, LCSW, a Clinical Assistant Professor at Dominican University, and that is no different with COVID-19. Earlier in the year in April and May, two workers from the  Bimbo Bakeries USA  factory in Cicero, Illinois, died from SARS-CoV-2.   The issue is that not only did the two workers died from COVID-19, but that   Bimbo Bakeries USA   also made the decision to not stop production for the well-being of their current employees or increase COVID-19 sanitization procedures. It was shared with some news outlets that when employees of   Bimbo Bakeries USA   were informed about the positive COVID-19 cases, they were given the option to continue to work or go home for the ten days recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) but   without pay   or   termination , (S...