• Who We Are
    • Who We Are
    • Mission
    • History
    • General Synod
    • Leadership and Ministry
    • Staff
    • United Church of Christ Board
  • What We Believe
    • What We Believe
    • Worship Ways
    • Daily Devotional
  • What We Do
    • What We Do
    • Office of the General Minister & President
    • Justice & Local Church Ministries
    • Wider Church Ministries
  • News
  • Church Finder
  • Donate Now
  • Search
UCC Logo United Church of Christ
  • Church Finder
  • Events
  • Contact
  • Store
  • Frontline Faith Portal
  • Donate Now
  • Search
  • Who We Are
    • Column
      • About
        • Mission
        • Constitution and Bylaws
        • History
          • UCC Archives
        • UCC Brand Guidelines
        • General Synod
          • Synod 33 Worship Videos
          • Past General Synods
        • Abuse Prevention
    • Column
      • Structure
        • Conferences
        • Affiliated Ministries
          • The Pension Boards
          • Cornerstone Fund
          • Insurance Board
          • The Council for Health and Human Services Ministries
          • Church Building & Loan Fund
          • Convergence
    • Column
      • Team
        • Elected Officers
        • Staff
        • United Church of Christ Board
          • Board Minutes
        • Office of General Counsel
        • UCCOSSN
    • Column
      • Career Opportunities
      • Annual Reports
  • What We Believe
    • Column
      • Worship
        • Statement of Faith of the United Church of Christ – La Declaración de Fe de la Iglesia Unida de Cristo
        • Worship Ways
        • Daily Devotional
        • Sermon Seeds
  • How We Serve
    • Column
      • Office of the General Minister & President
        • Welcome to Human Resources
          • Employee Relations Resources
        • Center for Analytics, Research & Development and Data (CARDD)
          • General CARDD FAQs
          • About The Center for Analytics, Research & Development, and Data (CARDD)
          • Authorized Minister Opt Out
          • Access UCC
          • Archived Reports
          • Assessment Resources
          • Information Policies and Requests
          • Faith Communities Today (FACT) Survey
          • MissionInsite
          • Statistics and Reports
          • Vital Signs and Statistics Blog
          • Data Hub FAQs
          • Data Hub
          • Yearbook and Directory
    • Column
      • Justice & Local Church Ministries
        • Justice
          • Faithful Action Ministries
            • Environmental Justice Ministries
            • Economic Justice
            • Racial Justice
          • Office of Public Policy & Advocacy in Washington D.C.
            • Justice and Peace Action Network
            • Our Faith Our Vote
            • Justice Training Resources
            • Action Center
          • Health and Wholeness Advocacy
            • Disabilities and Mental Health Justice
            • Encuentros Latinx
            • UCC HIV & AIDS Network-UCAN
            • LGBTQ Ministries
            • Our Whole Lives
            • Overdose and Drug Use Ministries
            • Scouting
            • Wellness Ministries
          • The Pilgrim Press & Stillspeaking Publications
    • Column
      • Justice & Local Church Ministries
        • Local Church
          • The Faith Education, Innovation and Formation (Faith INFO)Team
            • Weekly Seeds
            • Youth & Young Adults
          • Worship Resources
            • Worship Ways
            • Sermon Seeds
            • Synod 33 Worship Videos
            • Music and Liturgical Arts
          • Stewardship & Generosity Resources
          • Ministerial Excellence, Support & Authorization (MESA)
            • History, Polity, and Theology
            • Search and Call
            • Ministerial Profiles
            • Ministry Opportunities
            • Manual on Ministry
    • Column
      • Wider Church Ministries
        • Global Ministries
        • Global H.O.P.E.
          • Volunteer Ministries
          • Refugee and Migration Ministries
          • Disaster Ministries
          • Recovering Hope
        • Ecumenical and Interfaith Relations
  • Resources
  • News
    • Column
      • News
        • United Church of Christ News
    • Column
      • Columns
        • Witness for Justice
        • Into the Mystic
        • Getting to the Root of It
        • The Pollinator: UCC Environmental Justice Blog
        • UCC Roots
        • Encounters at the Well
        • Reflexiones
    • Column
      • Upcoming Events
        • Webinars
      • Subscriptions at the United Church of Christ
      • Changes & Deaths
  • Giving
    • Column
      • Donate Now
      • Ways to Give
        • Giving Tuesday
        • General Synod 2021 Thursday in Black Offering
        • General Synod 2021 Racial Justice Offering
        • Disaster Ministries: How to Give
        • Our Church’s Wider Mission
          • Our Church’s Wider Mission Basic Support
          • Strengthen the Church
          • One Great Hour of Sharing
          • Neighbors in Need
          • Christmas Fund
          • 5 for 5
    • Column
      • Ways We Give
        • Scholarships & Grants

  • Home
  • News
  • Column
  • Daily COVID-19 briefing from UCC - facts, not fear
  • COVID-19 “New Normal?” (Part One)

COVID-19 “New Normal?” (Part One)

by Barbara T. Baylor | published on Apr 30, 2020

United Church of Christ – Wider Church Ministries
Humanitarian Development Team
Coronavirus (COVID-19) Daily Briefing
Barbara T. Baylor, MPH – Temporary Health Liaison

COVID-19 New Normal?” (Part One)
 
When will things “go back to normal?” Or are we headed into a “new normal?” If so, what will that “new normal” look like?

“You can call it the ‘new normal.’ I call it the ‘now normal’ because I think every day is going to be different,” said Juliette Kayyem, a former assistant secretary in the Department of Homeland Security, in a CNN piece titled “America’s ‘new normal’ will be anything but ordinary.”

On Wednesday, President Trump reportedly rejected the notion of a “new normal,” saying that COVID-19 “is going away” soon and that he sees “‘new normal being what it was three months ago.’”

The President and some governors clearly are eager to get America “back open” quickly even if conditions his own government set for “Opening Up America Again” aren’t met. See April 29 UCC COVID-19 Daily Briefing.

Others, including physicians on the White House Coronavirus Task Force and at the Centers for Disease Control, are more cautious, saying that “we will have to keep social distancing through the summer” (Dr. Deborah Birx) and that, without tremendous vigilance, a resurgence of COVID-19 is all but certain this fall (Drs. Anthony Fauci and Robert R. Redfield).

The impact of COVID-19 is likely to be with us for far longer than we think (or want!) and will continue to bring many changes to our lives.

The “new normal” implies that something that was previously abnormal has become commonplace, for better or worse.

In tomorrow’s daily briefing, we’ll look at “new normals” for the longer term – up to widespread availability of a vaccine and beyond. In today’s daily briefing, let’s explore some selected “new normals” we can expect to begin or continue in the coming months, especially as states move step by step to calibrate economic and social activity while limiting new COVID-19 infections.

For starters, here are some “new normals” cited in CNN’s “America’s ‘new normal’ will be anything but ordinary” that we’re already seeing or are likely to be seeing soon:

Mass temperature checks, mandatory use of face masks, empty sports and entertainment venues, increased sanitization efforts and deep cleaning, limits on unnecessary travel, floor plans conducive to physical distancing; disposable menus and masked servers in restaurants with fewer seats.

NPR’s Rachel Martin, host of Morning Edition, ponders: How will things change in the post-pandemic world? Is this the end of handshakes? What about salad bars? Are we going to stay tethered to technology to keep the virus at bay?

Because COVID-19 is so widespread and contagious, webcasting and teleconferencing have exploded since the start of the pandemic, with churches using it for worship, meetings and fellowship; schools for instruction; friends and family for socializing, and doctors for virtual appointments with patients.

Take telemedicine, for example. As of March 17, 2020, CMS has expanded access to telemedicine for Medicare patients, while allowing providers to waive or reduce costs. Although not new, virtual medical visits have become the new normal during the COVID-19 pandemic because COVID-19 is so widespread and contagious.

Virtual medical visits allow patients to pay for an e-visit with a licensed physician. They provide a no-contact means to pre-screen patients and refer only those who absolutely need emergency treatment to emergency rooms, substantially minimizing the risk of exposure to other patients and healthcare providers. 

One drawback to telemedicine is that you must have a smartphone and/or computer with videoconferencing software and an internet connection.

View – The Doctor’s Checklist: Technical Tips for a Successful Telehealth Visit

Stay at Home, Shelter in Place

For most non-essential workers across the United States, the most immediate, biggest “new normal” has been to stay at home.

As a result, observes Theresa Nutten, a therapist in the Purdue University Counseling and Psychological Services:

“Some people may find themselves in survival mode, Others may be attempting to settle into their new routines. For some, this means trying to combat social isolation. For many, it means learning how to live (or re-live) with friends, family members, partners, or roommates, which is not always easy. Others may be struggling with the fatigue, frustration, sadness, anger, grief, and anxiety of adjusting. Some people have gone through the adjustment process and are finding comfort in your new norm.”
 
Nutten advises us:

  • This situation is both uncertain and temporary! It’s okay not to feel okay. It’s also okay (and encouraged) to seek help and support!
  • Adjustment is a process that looks different for most people. This process is not linear or well-defined. Patience and flexibility are important.
  • Setting a routine can be helpful! In addition to doing your work or schoolwork, make sure to schedule time for your physical and emotional health, fun, creatively, social connection, and stress relief.

This is good advice for all aspects of living, and living into, a “new normal.”

References:

Virtual medical visits are the new normal during coronavirus pandemic

This IT expert says telemedicine will be part of the new normal

COVID-19 Daily Briefing Archives

Categories: Column Daily COVID-19 briefing from UCC - facts, not fear

Get the UCC in your inbox!

Sign up for the weekly UCC News Digest

Privacy Policy
 
 

Related News

Column

Planning for Earth Month: Resources for Congregations

April is Earth Month, and for congregations, it can be a great time to further discern how...

Read More
Into the Mystic

We Would Be Building

Listen to the...

Read More
Witness for Justice
Witness for Justice

The Sacred Web of Abundance

The day after spreading their child’s ashes in Welaunee, also known as the South River...

Read More
  • Column
    • Local Church and Conference Resource Directory
    • Mission
    • Justice & Local Church Ministries
    • Wider Church Ministries
    • General Synod Resolutions
  • Column
    • Contact
    • News
    • Store

Content on ucc.org is copyrighted by the National Setting of the United Church of Christ and may be only shared according to the guidelines outlined here.

1300 E. 9th Street, Suite 1100
Cleveland, Ohio 44114

  • Follow us on Facebook
  • Follow us on Twitter
  • Follow us on Instagram
  • Subscribe on YouTube

Donate Now


UCC CrestUCC Crest
© United Church of Christ 2023. Privacy Policy.
Crafted by Cornershop Creative