ABSTRACT
Rural surgeons from disparate areas of the United States report on the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic in their communities as the virus has spread across the country. The pandemic has brought significant changes to the professional, economic, and social lives of the individual surgeons and their communities.
Subject(s)
COVID-19/epidemiology , Rural Health Services , Surgeons , Alaska/epidemiology , Arizona/epidemiology , Health Services, Indigenous/organization & administration , Health Services, Indigenous/statistics & numerical data , Hospitals, Rural/organization & administration , Hospitals, Rural/statistics & numerical data , Humans , Idaho/epidemiology , Illinois/epidemiology , Indiana/epidemiology , Ohio/epidemiology , Oregon/epidemiology , Rural Health Services/organization & administration , Rural Health Services/statistics & numerical data , Rural Population , West Virginia/epidemiologyABSTRACT
Nine surgeons from rural and remote communities in the United States share early experiences preparing for the COVID-19 pandemic. Relating experiences remarkably different from health care providers in urban areas in America most affected by the first stages of the outbreak, they tell the challenges of organizing resources in facilities already struggling with poverty-stricken communities far from established health care resources and supplies. From Alaska to Appalachia and the Navajo Nation to the rural midwest, they show the leadership and professionalism that exemplify rural surgery.