KENT COUNTY, Mich. — The local community is looking back on years of pain, grief and healing.
Three years since the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a global pandemic, West Michigan residents have been no strangers to the impacts of the virus.
"I think we've learned a ton about how to better protect ourselves from respiratory viruses going forward," said Liam Sullivan, an adult infectious disease specialist at Corewell Health West. "And, hopefully, we'll continue to apply those lessons as we go forward. And you know, when we deal with other viruses like this that, unfortunately, inevitably, we're probably going to have something similar to this at some point in the future."
With over 180,000 confirmed cases and over 1,000 deaths in Kent County since the pandemic began, residents have had to learn from the virus as they endured prolonged spikes in cases, hospitals over capacity and even large centers like DeVos Place transformed into vaccine clinics when high-risk groups first became eligible for vaccination.
"This has had a massive impact on the healthcare system that is still being felt to this day," Sullivan said. "And I think it's going to be felt for years and years to come."
For many, however, the impacts continue to affect everyday life. Known as COVID long-haulers, these individuals have had to deal with both years of lasting health impacts after contracting the virus and living in a society that has seemingly moved on.
"I'm frustrated," long-hauler Kathleen Hart said. "I do see a light at the end of the tunnel. I know that my health care providers have different strategies for me now."
"But managing symptoms isn't fixing me," Hart said. "And I have so much more appreciation for people that have chronic illnesses now, and I consider this a chronic illness. This is something that can flare up anytime."
As one of tens of millions of Americans who have reported having long-term COVID symptoms, Hart says some of the biggest lessons to learn are for the world and community to band together in the face of challenges and to extend grace and kindness to all, as COVID has left its mark on different people in different ways.
"And if there are people with the long haul symptoms, and then they still are having symptoms and they're still having issues, then the medical community needs to step up and recognize that and work on that," Hart said.
"Just to say that it's over because it's been three years and we have a vaccine - there's still an entire population out there that is not okay yet," Hart said.
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