Summer 2020
Volume 69, Number 2
Heroes on the Sidelines
It is said that when the going gets tough, the tough get going. When the COVID-19 crisis struck, Sidney Kimmel Medical College students took that old maxim to heart...
“So many who are sick and hospitalized aren’t able to have their loved ones with them. I had
a hospice conversation with a longtime patient—she and I cried over our masks, and I couldn’t
hug her. It felt like a failure in the humanistic side of how we care for people.”
—Palliative Care Physician
”My studies have become more meaningful. Seeing healthcare heroes making sacrifices and being stretched to their limits just cements my decision to continue on this path and make a difference in the world.”
—Physician Assistant student
”Home has become a tumultuous atmosphere of uncertainty, where family members keep checking the news for any shred of hope. Despite this, we are still finding moments to laugh and spend time together... to sit down together and rekindle our relationships with each other.”
—Medical student
Giving voice to service and experience
View Jefferson more COVID stories, haikus from the frontlines, and reflections from the pandemic.
Looking at Healthcare in the Mirror of a Pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic holds up a mirror that shows us what’s lacking and compels us to ask some tough questions. The U.S. spends more on healthcare than any other country. Yet among wealthy nations, we have the lowest life expectancy...
COVID-19 Better Together Fund Impact
The COVID-19 pandemic impacted the world and challenged Jefferson to new levels. Along the way, it created severe financial hardships for thousands of Jefferson employees and students. But our alumni and community of friends rose up to give aid and comfort—to show that we are better together...