Grieving During the Pandemic

The Corona Virus Pandemic has affected everyone at a personal level. Masks, vaccinations, quarantines, closed businesses, lost jobs, work from home, unemployment, etc. Some of these are necessary, some of questionable necessity, and some completely unnecessary. They can be tolerable, burdensome, and sometimes, horrible.

In recent episodes of two TV series, NCIS and Blue Bloods, a character's wife contracts the virus and dies in quarantine. The horrible part is that the men are not permitted to be with their wives in the last days of their lives. The personal contact was taken from them.

A friend's wife who has Parkinson's Disease is also experiencing dementia. Yet, after over 50 years of marriage, for many months, he could not be with his wife, and only allowed to see her through a glass window. I know that he has been concerned about being without his wife, and can only imagine that this pandemic has added to his pain.

The doctors must be forced to realize that they are not only treating a terminal patient but also that they must treat the mental health of their patient's spouse. Their code to "first, do no harm" must extend to those who love the patient.

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