The rapid global spread of COVID-19 has forced some health care providers to make gut-wrenching choices. In Italy, doctors had to decide which terminally-ill patients received ventilators. And in New York, there have been reports of patients unable to get lifesaving treatments.
With Cedar Valley hospitals, health clinics and nursing homes still in critical need of personal protective equipment, the University of Northern Iowa continues to be part of the supply effort.
Paige Mathews always knew she wanted to help others. She was pursuing a nursing degree when she unexpectedly discovered her true calling while taking a prerequisite athletic training class.
“I went in and I thought, ‘I’m just gonna’ go and tape some ankles and watch people on the sidelines. It’s gonna’ be so boring,’” said Mathews, now in her second year of graduate studies in UNI’s athletic training program. “Now, I’m still surprised every day of what athletic trainers can do.”
Karen Mitchell had just experienced a series of unthinkable tragedies — including the death of her partner of almost 20 years — and felt herself in a fugue state. Then she tried an increasingly popular form of yoga developed to help people recover from trauma. The class helped her start a path towards healing.
“I think it has a lot to do with listening to your body. Your body will tell you the truth,” she said.
Facing a dire shortage of protective gear for healthcare workers, hospitals in Iowa and across the country have turned to their communities for assistance. In the Cedar Valley, the University of Northern Iowa is helping answer that call.
We’re living in unprecedented times and, as our lifestyles drastically alter to slow the spread of coronavirus, we all have questions on how to adapt. In this feature, we’ll turn to UNI experts for jargon-free answers. Have a question you’d like to see answered? Please email us at ur@uni.edu.
How do I tell if I have a cold/flu vs coronavirus? Do only older people get sick?
The University of Northern Iowa will host a health panel on the coronavirus featuring experts from the university and Black Hawk County Health Department in an effort to dispel myths about the virus and provide information to the community on how to prevent and combat its spread.
The panel will be held at 3 p.m., March 11 in the Lang Hall Auditorium on UNI’s campus.
It’s a pathogen that’s quickly become a household name.
Most of the world had never heard of coronavirus until just two months ago, when a novel version known as SARS-CoV-2, which causes a respiratory disease known as COVID-19, quickly began to spread first in China and then across the globe.
