Patient vulnerability in a pandemic

COVID-19 has highlighted racial health disparities and social inequalities and injustices in the United States. Individuals suffering from underlying medical conditions, in particular those with multiple chronic conditions, such as heart disease, obesity, and kidney disease, are at increased risk of a COVID-19 diagnosis and COVID-related mortality. These individuals are often from vulnerable populations — the elderly, the immunocompromised, the institutionalized, and the disenfranchised. 

Dr. Clark-Cutaia will describe what this means for her patient population, and how this may impact their care moving forward. Additionally, she will introduce the vulnerability of the nurses providing care to these patients in the height of the pandemic.

Maya Clark-Cutaia, RN, MSN, PhD, is an assistant professor of nursing at NYU Rory Meyers College of Nursing. Her scholarship focuses on the increased risk morbidity and mortality that result from ESRD and hemodialysis renal replacement therapy. This patient population is more likely to suffer from sudden cardiac events, are two to three times more likely to be rehospitalized than the general population and spend a disproportionally high percentage of Medicare funds. Clark-Cutaia’s long-term goal is to impact ESRD sufferer's quality of life by decreasing symptom burden. Clark-Cutaia continues to practice as a nurse practitioner in the fields of Urology, General Surgery, and Otorhinolaryngology.