The world was scrambling to understand and control the Zika virus epidemic when I began covering health care five years ago. I was a first year graduate student studying health and medical journalism at the University of Georgia. Although the reports coming out of South America horrified me – babies born with severe birth defects due to Zika – I eagerly honed my skills for the day that I might cover an outbreak of a new infectious disease.
Before coronavirus, I thought that covering a pandemic would be the pinnacle of a health care reporter’s career, but now I realize my naivety. Each time I write about a new statistic, I think about the human being behind the number. I think about all the patients, medical professionals and public health workers who I’ve interviewed over the years and hope that they’re OK. I worry about their mental health as much if not more than their physical health.
I want the health care community to know that I’m here to listen and tell your coronavirus stories if you will let me. I know that there will be tragedies, but there will also be beautiful stories of heroism, healing and hope – please help me tell those, too. You can reach me by email, efite@timesfreepress.com, or Twitter @ecfite.
– Elizabeth Fite, health care reporter