I CAN’T agree more to an opinion piece published last week in the Shenzhen Daily that calls for transparency in the release of the latest COVID statistics so as to quell the misinformation and disinformation hovering over the discussion of the pandemic. I’ve noticed that more than one person, particularly senior citizens, have expressed to me their worries about being affected and developing serious complications. An aunt asked me yesterday where she could get a nucleic acid test to make sure she’s not affected, and was disappointed when I told her that the nearest test site was five bus stops away. Having been convinced by widespread reports about the serious side effects of the COVID and long COVID, which had been based on the research of the previous Alpha and Delta variants, many are deeply worried for their safety as China is gradually easing its restrictions on pandemic control, by limiting the areas of lockdown if a confirmed case is spotted and by discontinuing mass COVID testing. Not just the governments need to give timely explanations about their policy adjustments and the logic behind the shift; citizens also need to make efforts to help get the information across to their elder family members, relatives and neighbors to relieve their worries. There have already been reports about senior citizens, out of worry about the pandemic, who took preventive medicines on their own and suffered liver damage. The best prevention thus far is taking all three rounds of vaccines, and if possible, adding a fourth effort in the form of an inhaled vaccine. It’s not easy to age in our modern society, as there are new technologies and new developments in life every day that are sometimes hard to catch up with for senior citizens. As everyone will inevitably grow old one day, let’s do what we can to help the elderly around us and make life easier for them, by talking and explaining to them why the COVID policies have changed and how to better cope under the new situation.David Liu via email | 