We’ve been able to learn many lessons from the 1918 Spanish Flu pandemic that crippled the United States, including improved ventilation and mask-wearing in order to reduce the likelihood of contracting and or spreading the virus—COVID-19 in this case.

After that pandemic faded, terms like isolation and quarantine that were developed during that crisis remained a part of our culture and a way that disease outbreaks are handled even today.

So now the question remains, what from the current pandemic will remain in our lives after the acute threat has passed? Fulton Center for Rehabilitation and Nursing has a look at three particular ways that things could change for good.

  1. New Way to Greet

It was always considered disrespectful not to shake hands with someone upon greeting them, even though many already considered the practice unsanitary. But during the pandemic, that has mostly shifted to fist bumps, elbow bumps, or even a friendly wave. While the handshake will likely return, these alternative methods of greeting someone may stick around.

  1. Leaning on Technology

Online shopping services that exploded at the early part of the pandemic remain popular today. In addition to Amazon, many people started doing grocery shopping online through services like Instacart and had food delivered with Doordash and Uber Eats. Even though it’s more safe to go out, especially for those who are vaccinated, these are still proving to be popular businesses. In addition, doctors are expected to keep taking on more telehealth visits for non-emergencies, as consumers enjoyed the convenience and lower price once they were forced to adapt to the technology.

  1. Scientific Progress

One advantage we had today that wasn’t around a century ago was the means to develop a vaccine in record time and using new scientific breakthroughs to help make it the most effective vaccine in medical history. It’s now expected that the mRNA vaccine used to prevent COVID-19 and the creativity and collaboration that different companies and people in different fields utilized over the past year will result in more effective vaccines in the future even and possibly even against diseases that we currently do not have a vaccine for.

 

To learn more about Fulton Center for Rehabilitation and Nursing and all of the services they offer, visit http://fulton-center.facilities.centershealthcare.org.