As hospitals once again become overwhelmed by COVID-19 patients, Dr. Robert Klitzman reflects over his time in the medical field. “As physicians, we are responsible for treating patients; even those who make bad decisions.” He further exemplifies health care professionals who commonly treat patients with diabetes due to poor diet. Patients who make these bad decisions require a doctor’s assistance, therefore “doctors must treat all patients who require assistance,” vaccinated or not.
Dr. Klitzman continues, “prioritizing medical care based on someone's vaccine status is problematic since it is often unclear to doctors why patients aren't vaccinated.” Additionally, whether it be misinformation from social media or medical reasons, raising concerns regarding a patient’s vaccination status could “fuel mistrust and exacerbate existing disparities.
Dr. Klitzman ended his segment encouraging people to get vaccinated while reminding viewers of the strenuous circumstances our health care professionals are currently dealing with throughout the pandemic.
Read Dr. Robert Klitzman’s CNN article here and watch his CNN interview here.
