Should my family be thinking about getting any shots as the cold and flu season approaches? Absolutely. Here is some information on the flu shot and the somewhat complex information about Covid vaccine boosters…

First the bad news. Covid is everywhere right now. Back in August we had 8 positive cases per day per 100,000 population. At that time Mississippi was having a crisis with 120 cases/day/100,000 people, a rate I had calculated would overwhelm our county’s hospitals. In September our case rate had gone up to 20. Today in Yuma County we are up to 87, and this number does not include the people who choose not to get tested or do home tests that don’t get reported to the state. Recently, over half the covid tests run in Wray have been positive. The state of Colorado is at 194. Alabama is testing positive at 387 cases/day/100,000 population.

The possible good news…

As we enter another holiday season under the uncertain storm of the pandemic, I have two wishes. The first is that we might all agree that Covid poses a real threat especially to those with certain risk factors. If we can agree upon that, than it follows that as a society, everybody, including those who are not higher risk, should do their part to protect those at risk, and prevent overwhelming our hospitals, and minimize death and suffering, each in their own way. The truth is hard to find. Do masks work? Are vaccines safe? Are there effective drugs to treat those infected? I think most people know my opinion, but I’m not pretending to know all the answers, and here today, I am only asking people to agree that Covid is real, seek the truth and do what they think is right. In this rural county, I think that might be enough.

Second, I’m wishing even harder that we might regain our humanity. In 1959,

Despite the fact I’ve had two Covid vaccines plus a booster, and despite the fact that I know that when I show up with a mask I tend to run the risk of alienating people in this county, I try to wear a mask in public. If I am eating

Now that the Pfizer Covid vaccine is being made available for children age 5-11, some parents are asking, "Should I get my child vaccinated?" It's a very good question.

In general the risk of serious illness in healthy kids age 5-11 is very low. At my last check, there have been 146 children in this age group who have died of Covid in the U.S. since the pandemic began a year and a half ago. Any preventable death is a tragedy, but this compares to 35 - 199 annual deaths of children under 18 from influenza. To put things in perspective,

Do I need another Covid shot? Officials are working hard to make recommendations on vaccines as information evolves, but it can make it hard for the rest of us to know what to do, so here's a ranking of who should get a covid first, second or third shot as of most recent recommendations.

Top Priority. If you are over 65, obese, or have underlying medical conditions and have not been vaccinated, you are in the group we most want to get vaccinated.

If you are eligible for v

It is hard to sort through information about the Covid vaccines. Even if you have made up your mind regarding the Covid vaccine, I would like to share some vaccine information from what I consider trusted sources, sources like Up To Date, which has been my most trusted source of medical information over the years.

I am leaving the comfort of a thriving practice at the Wray Clinic, not because of any conflict or dissatisfaction with any of the staff or my colleagues, but because after over six years of dreaming, I have finally mustered the courage to venture into a growing new healthcare model called direct primary care. It has begun with my ongoing…