Not a Doctor

Share this post

Follow the experts

notadoctor.substack.com

Discover more from Not a Doctor

Practical, not-panicky advice for a pandemic
Continue reading
Sign in

Follow the experts

Twitter can be an amazing place for getting news as the pandemic unfurls — as long as you're following people who know their stuff.

Melody Schreiber
Mar 26, 2020
3
Share this post

Follow the experts

notadoctor.substack.com
Share

Welcome to Not a Doctor, the only (free!) newsletter about health and science that encourages you to forget all about those New Year’s resolutions and log onto social media one more time, because life can be really tough and you’ve earned the break!

I’m Melody Schreiber, a journalist and the editor of What We Didn’t Expect (Nov. 2020). I’m not a doctor, or a scientist, or really an expert of any kind. I just like to ask questions (and ignore my own attempts at self-improvement).

🌡 🌡 🌡

One of my biggest New Year’s resolutions for 2020 was to go off Twitter, or at least use it considerably less.

On New Year’s Eve, I fired up the app, because everyone knows the key to a successful resolution is splurging on whatever will be off-limits soon.

And I saw this tweet:

Twitter avatar for @alexandraphelan
Dr Alexandra Phelan @alexandraphelan
2019 gives us “just one more thing”. Cluster of unknown viral origin pneumonia in Wuhan (pop: 11m) 🦠27 sick (7 severe), inc seafood market stallholders. 🦠No human to human recorded yet. Tests for Flu & SARS likely but not yet confirmed. scmp.com/news/china/pol…
scmp.comHong Kong takes emergency steps as mystery ‘pneumonia’ infects 27 in WuhanMost cases have originated from a single seafood market and health workers are still trying to identify virus responsible.
5:55 PM ∙ Dec 31, 2019
58Likes41Retweets

From then on, I started following global health experts who were tracking this mystery pneumonia — at first quizzically, reading news reports here and there of an illness that Chinese officials said was not being transmitted from person to person, and then urgently, as that proved not to be the case.

My resolution was shattered, but in time so were many of the others — we hardly knew ye, “hang out with friends in person more.”

Although it can be time-consuming and anxiety-inducing, Twitter can also be a great way to follow experts in real-time as our knowledge of this virus changes rapidly.

But it’s important to follow vetted experts who actually know what they’re talking about.

Here are some of my favorite sources! You may notice they skew pretty American and Canadian, mostly because I’ve been following updates around North America much more closely of late.

🌡 🌡 🌡

Experts

Alexandra Phelan, of course, is an instructor at Georgetown and an essential source on the intersection of public health and the law. (See above!)

Marc Lipsitch, the director of the Center for Communicable Disease Dynamics at Harvard School of Public Health, is an infectious disease epidemiologist and microbiologist.

Twitter avatar for @mlipsitch
Marc Lipsitch @mlipsitch
My reply to John Ioannidis' comment yesterday: We know enough now to act decisively against Covid-19. Social distancing is a good place to start statnews.com/2020/03/18/we-… via @statnews
statnews.comWe know enough now to act decisively against Covid-19 - STATEven though we have only meager data on Covid-19, we know enough to act and there is an imperative to respond strongly and swiftly to it.
2:49 PM ∙ Mar 18, 2020
705Likes394Retweets

Dr. Nahid Bhadelia is an infectious disease physician, an associate professor, and director of the Special Pathogen Unit at the Boston Medical Center.

Twitter avatar for @BhadeliaMD
Dr. Nahid Bhadelia @BhadeliaMD
Have PPE? Have other equipment? Want to make donations of other things to @The_BMC? We need your help! #COVID19
bmc.orgCoronavirus (COVID-19): How You Can Help BMCBoston Medical Needs Your Support Now As the coronavirus (COVID-19) situation around the world and in Massachusetts continues to evolve, Boston Medical Center’s unique position caring for our city’s most vulnerable residents has never been more crucial. The health and safety of our patients and fron…
9:27 PM ∙ Mar 25, 2020
10Likes11Retweets

Maia Majumder is an instructor at Harvard Medical School.

Twitter avatar for @maiamajumder
Maia Majumder, PhD @maiamajumder
To be very clear: by February 1, @mandl & I found that multiple studies had come to the same conclusion about #COVID19 – that it had the potential to cause epidemics & that preparation was a must. Don’t let *anyone* (including the President) tell you that we didn't see it coming.
Twitter avatar for @maiamajumder
Maia Majumder, PhD @maiamajumder
Our study evaluating the impact of preprints on global discourse about #COVID19 transmissibility is now peer-reviewed & up at @LancetGH – including an analysis of early basic reproduction number estimates & agreement regarding epidemic potential there-in: https://t.co/nZPIGd1uMc https://t.co/bW1fmfIX7C
9:12 PM ∙ Mar 25, 2020
442Likes218Retweets

Tara Smith is a professor and infectious disease epidemiologist. She’s amazing at answering questions!

Twitter avatar for @aetiology
Dr. Tara C. Smith @aetiology
Quick thread on today's @CDCMMWR paper on #coronavirus infections and transmission on cruise ships (cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/6…), including the Diamond Princess (DP). /1
cdc.govPublic Health Responses to COVID-19 Outbreaks on Cruise Ships...More than 800 cases of laboratory-confirmed coronavirus disease 2019 cases occurred during outbreaks on three cruise ship voyages, and cases linked to several additional cruises have been reported...
12:57 AM ∙ Mar 24, 2020
629Likes430Retweets

Jeremy Konyndyk is a senior policy fellow at the Center for Global Development. He’s been very outspoken about the policies needed to curb this pandemic.

Twitter avatar for @JeremyKonyndyk
Jeremy MORE PPE NOW Konyndyk @JeremyKonyndyk
NEW INITIATIVE Local action & ownership is the frontline of pandemic response. But there is little guidance out there designed for local leaders. Over the past 2 weeks, a group of us have been working to start filling that gap:
covidlocal.orgA Frontline Guide for Local Decision-MakersA Frontline Guide for Local Decision-Makers Facing The COVID-19 Pandemic
2:18 PM ∙ Mar 23, 2020
902Likes575Retweets

Tom Inglesby is the director of the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security. He’s given great recommendations for what we can do to fight the virus.

Twitter avatar for @T_Inglesby
Tom Inglesby @T_Inglesby
Before considering big changes to social distancing measures now, we should as quickly as possible get to strongest possible position for COVID response – we're no where near that now. We'll need rapid Dxs in place almost every location where a pt can be seen for care.16/x
11:53 PM ∙ Mar 23, 2020
6,455Likes1,137Retweets

Caitlin Rivers is an assistant professor at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security. She keeps a flow of information, especially comparing responses in the U.S. and elsewhere.

Twitter avatar for @cmyeaton
Caitlin Rivers, PhD @cmyeaton
The United States registered more new cases today than South Korea has had total. ROK was once thought of as hard-hit but has since regained control.
Twitter avatar for @BNODesk
BNO Newsroom @BNODesk
Wednesday's major coronavirus updates: - USA: +11,204 cases, +146 deaths - Spain: +7,457 cases, +656 deaths - Italy: +5,210 cases, +683 deaths - Germany: +3,907 cases, +47 deaths - France: +2,931 cases, +231 deaths - Iran: +2,206 cases, +143 deaths - UK: +1,452 cases, +43 deaths
12:22 AM ∙ Mar 26, 2020
296Likes145Retweets

Isaac Bogoch is an infectious diseases physician and scientist at the University of Toronto. He’s a great source on what’s happening a little farther North.

Twitter avatar for @BogochIsaac
Isaac Bogoch @BogochIsaac
Canada is making the transition from travel-related #COVID19 cases to locally-acquired cases. Close to 50% of all infections are now locally acquired. Time to: 1. Practice physical distancing 2. Test broadly 3. Isolate (and support!) those infected
tgam.caNearly half of Canada’s COVID-19 cases now acquired through community spread, Public Health Agency of Canada saysPublic-health experts say Canada faces a crucial few weeks during which hospitals will have an influx of severely ill patients that will strain their resources
1:55 AM ∙ Mar 25, 2020
194Likes111Retweets

Trevor Bedford is a scientist at Fred Hutch (Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center). He’s been doing some excellent modeling on possible cases in Washington state and around the country.

Twitter avatar for @trvrb
Trevor Bedford @trvrb
A thread on #SARSCoV2 mutations and what they might mean for the #COVID19 vaccination and immunity, in which I predict it will take the virus a few years to mutate enough to significantly hinder a vaccine. 1/12
1:45 AM ∙ Mar 25, 2020
4,980Likes2,536Retweets

Saskia Popescu is an infectious disease epidemiologist and editor of the George Mason University Pandora Report.

Twitter avatar for @SaskiaPopescu
Dr. Saskia Popescu @SaskiaPopescu
It’s been heartwarming to see how many companies have donated PPE but also food, like catered lunches, to hospitals lately as a way to thank HCWs. A small, but particularly endearing moment though was today, when an intensivist brought in lunch for the RNs/PCTs on the unit.
2:19 AM ∙ Mar 25, 2020
72Likes6Retweets

Nicholas Christakis is a Yale instructor and physician. He has a lot of easy-to-understand explanations of what’s happening and what to do.

Twitter avatar for @NAChristakis
Nicholas A. Christakis @NAChristakis
In this thread, I collect the threads about #COVID19 #SARSCoV2 that I have prepared on various aspects of the coronavirus pandemic. Please note that the situation is fluid and knowledge may change and be updated. Feel free to suggest topics in response to this tweet. 1/
2:59 PM ∙ Mar 15, 2020
2,133Likes967Retweets

Michael Mina is an assistant professor of epidemiology and Immunology, and a physician at Harvard School of Public Health and Medicine.

Twitter avatar for @michaelmina_lab
Michael Mina @michaelmina_lab
Amazing to see so much #COVID19 social distancing! It is working! REMINDER: The better we do now, the less we will actively notice the benefits -> absence of infections isn’t interesting. Let’s keep this in mind when we start wondering why we continue to shelter at home.
3:56 AM ∙ Mar 23, 2020
514Likes186Retweets

🌡 🌡 🌡

Who do you turn to for news during this epidemic? Leave a comment below, or get in touch at melodyaschreiber@gmail.com.

In the meantime, if you know someone who might appreciate this newsletter, please feel free to forward it to them!

3
Share this post

Follow the experts

notadoctor.substack.com
Share
Comments
Top
New
Community

No posts

Ready for more?

© 2023 Melody Schreiber
Privacy ∙ Terms ∙ Collection notice
Start WritingGet the app
Substack is the home for great writing