As we continue navigating COVID-19, many individuals are grappling with the long-term effects of the illness and how to protect themselves and their communities. Dr. Eric Griggs, a New Orleans-based public health advocate and trusted voice in health education, community medicine physician, and the immediate past president of 100 Black Men of America Health & Wellness, spoke with the Amsterdam News for a Q&A about the status of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Griggs has a focus on finding positive, effective ways to discuss long-term effects of COVID and why precautionary measures like vaccinations are still essential in the fight against it. Known for his motto “Get checked. Get fit. Get moving,” he has been at the forefront of health education throughout the pandemic. He emphasized that while immediate recovery from COVID-19 is important, the long-term consequences are still a reality for many.
This conversation has been edited and condensed for clarity.
AmNews: Could you talk about the work you do regarding COVID and health communication?
Dr. Eric Griggs (Griggs): During the COVID pandemic, we worked with the Department of Health and Human Service on all levels. Once COVID hit, we hit the streets and we did everything we could. We started a podcast called NoiseFilter. We’ve done 13 Animations, [some of which] address Long COVID. It was no more evident than during the pandemic that we were also at a crisis in health communication. At the end of the day, all the science is great, but if you can’t communicate it to people, then you’re in trouble.
AmNews: Could you tell our readers more about NoiseFilter and the work you’ve done in educating the public?
Griggs: [At the beginning of] COVID, we were trying to warn people about what was coming … this illness is not quite flu-like. NoiseFilter was a daily podcast. It started off for healthcare workers, but the kids really loved it, so we made kid versions.
How do you respectfully educate a populace of educated people? I work with a group called STEM Nola, started by Dr. Calvin Mackie. Over the course of the pandemic, we had weekly episodes online. There was an episode about healthy lungs and unhealthy lungs.
I had a student-run community center. We worked directly with city governments to get people vaccinated.
If you want to change a household, change the kids. All the dynamics change. Kids are the future and they change the world.
AmNews: One of the myths that comes up often is that only individuals with underlying health issues get Long COVID. Could you speak to this?
Griggs: Sometimes people think one virus is another. The difference between COVID and other viruses is that COVID, although it has a respiratory portal of entry, affects all of your cardiovascular system. [I’ve seen] the difference between the chest cavity of someone with COVID and without.
Whether you have a pre-existing condition or not, COVID [can get] in, and whether or not you have major symptoms, COVID [can cause] damage to your blood vessels. As a consequence of that damage, your blood vessels have to go everywhere to supply the cells with blood. The damage causes inflammation and the inflammation has to be repaired.
Imagine a high school where you have the junior varsity and the varsity football team let loose with no supervision in the buffet-style cafeteria of a school. They would eat the food until someone got in there to restore order, and the school has to continue operating. The walls would have to be patched and repaired, someone would have to cook the food and help the students. and things would begin to function, but it would take awhile to get that cafeteria back to the order it was in before.
It’s the same thing with Long COVID, depending on your underlying condition. We want to protect those [people] specifically — we want people to get vaccinated. We’re doing that locally with 100 Black Men of Greater New Orleans — we want everyone to get vaccinated for RSV, COVID, and the flu.
AmNews: Is there anything else you want to tell readers about COVID, Long COVID, and where we are heading?
We’re working with the 100 Black Men of America, our local chapter here in New Orleans, and through with the Department of Health and Human Services about reducing the risk. We want people, particularly those who are vulnerable, to get vaccinated. Again, COVID is
still dangerous. The damage that can be done to your body can be catastrophic if you’re not careful, so we want people to get vaccinated. Don’t forget to wash your hands, if you’re sick, stay home. Let’s just stay wary [and] get vaccinated.
A bit frustrating that quality masking, ventilation, and air filtration weren’t mentioned among mitigations. The best way to not get long covid is to not get covid in the first place. And as important as immunization is, it doesn’t prevent acute disease even half as well as the nonpharmaceutical interventions that help prevent other airborne illnesses like RSV, Flu, Measles, Pertussis, and Tuberculosis as well. All of these diseases have been on the rise since the “Let ‘er rip” policy changes in 2022, and we need to take steps to adapt.