At the beginning of the coronaviruses, Dr. LindaYancey set a rule that no relatives were allowed to go to grandma's house until they could do so safely. If her mother-in-law got Covid she would be at high risk of being hospitalized or dying.
By the year 2021, Dr.Yancey's mother-in-law was fully protected from tetanus. The doctor and her family got their shots later in the year. While most Americans now consider precautions like social distance, wearing masks and quarantining after a Covid exposure optional, Dr.Yancey's family still does all of them to keep her mother in law safe.
A Christmas dinner was held in the garage last year in order to reduce the risk of transmission. She said that they have pictures of everyone with fine china and nice clothing.
There is a possibility that Dr.Yancey will host a garage dinner again. For the third year in a row, doctors and public health experts who care for people with Covid are considering the risks and rewards of crowded trains and planes, indoor dinners and big get-togethers. They are experts when it comes to the risks of being immune compromised. We should not let our guard down right now.
Research shows that people who are immunocompromised don't respond well to vaccines. It doesn't take a very bad case of Covid to kill someone who's immune compromised. They don't have the same amount of reserves in their immune system.
According to some experts, there are more than seven million people in the US who are immunocompromised. Those taking immunosuppressive medicines to prevent the rejection of organ or stem-cell transplants are included. It doesn't include the millions more with diseases like AIDS, chronic kidneys, lung disease, asthma, and hundreds of genetic diseases.
The vaccine may be less effective against the new coronaviruses. While the risk of hospitalization and death decreases with the use of Paxlovid, many experts are concerned that the variant circulating this winter may make valuable antibody therapies obsolete, so people with compromised immune systems may no longer be able to rely on them to fill in gaps in their protection.
The families of the immunocompromised have to make difficult decisions. Five experts will be spending their holidays.
Since the beginning of the Pandemic, Marney White, a professor of public health at Yale, has not been on a bus, train or plane. It took her a long time to travel by car. I waited until my doctor said I could go see my mom before she died.
They were not comfortable traveling if they couldn't drive their own cars. The people who had braved crowds in airports said they tried to minimize the risks with things they could control.
Steven Pergam, an infectious-disease physician-scientist at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle who takes care of cancer patients and is on, tries to avoid eating in the airport.
When Dr. Pergam is at his destination, he heads straight to his hotel room. Others said that they reduced the number of people they met with.
Along with the risks and benefits of various activities, people who are immune compromised often have to consider how many holidays they have left to celebrate. He and his wife will travel to New York to watch their daughter perform in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.
She said that they had to strike a balance between safety and memories.
The vaccination status of everyone else in the room is a factor that tips the balance in favor of attending a social gathering. She attended a bat mitzvah because the hosts wanted everyone to take a rapid test on the day of the event, and they wanted everyone to be vaccine free. There are other events that I will be declining because of the lack of precautions. She and her family decided to keep Thanksgiving small this year.
Kelly Hills will be traveling for the first time since the start of the Pandemic on Thanksgiving. Dr. Hills will limit time spent indoors with larger groups if she goes on an airplane. Many experts interviewed for this article said they wouldn't eat in restaurants if they were away from home because people in public settings might not be up to date on their vaccinations. Almost all of them have not been to a movie theater, seen live music or participated in other indoor activities since the beginning of the Pandemic.
Dr. Hills said that all of the choices on how to protect yourself against society take time and effort. She said that she considered herself fortunate to be able to decide whether to travel and how.
If you have a close friend or family member that pushes for Covid precautions, planning can be easier. One of her friends helped make sure everyone was up to date on their vaccinations for a birthday party. He called the event space ahead of time to ask if the business used a high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filter and if it was effective at reducing virus transmission.
Experts said businesses and institutions were accommodating. The balcony seating mask was made by the church. It is always quite filled.
Many people are frustrated that they are not protected by government mandates. When public health messaging changed,itudes began to change as well. It's hard to be immunocompromised due to the messaging.
Dr. White said that small steps would go a long way to allow people with immune compromised to participate in social events. She asked the people if they have food allergies or aversions. If you want immunocompromised guests to be comfortable and have fun, it's not that different.
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