MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Major events, like the World Championship Hot Wing Contest and numerous concerts, are planned across the city of Memphis this weekend. However, doctors, like infectious disease specialist Dr. Hiren Pokharna, fear these could turn into Covid-19 superspreaders.
"Absolutely, no question about it," Pokharna said. "The hospitals, if everybody doesn’t know yet, we are inundated."
Memphis-area hospitals are overwhelmed with 701 people currently hospitalized with the virus. Pokharna, who has been treating some of these patients, said without any mandated Covid-19 restrictions at these events, we need to take our own precautions.
"I think we want to have a balance on both sides," Pokharna said. "We definitely don’t want the people to be caged up or we don’t want to have them lose their freedom so what is important is again taking those preventive measures."
He advises, whether you are vaccinated or not, to mask up even in outdoor spaces, social distance if you are in crowded areas, and keep sanitizing your hands.
Pokharna said it can be up to us to limit the number of cases and relieve the stress inside the hospitals.
"It should be a moral responsibility, a social responsibility, and a commitment from the whole community," Pokharna said. "Again we are all a community that should feel like this is our city and we can set an example taking all those preventive measures."