![]() One of many influential voices in the development of affect theory, the literary critic Lauren Berlant’s work is particularly incisive for healthcare professionals working on COVID-19. By grounding the feelings of healthcare providers and researchers in the historical context of the present-e.g., grief for the life lost, rage at the impotent political response, or the emotional responsibility needed to deliver care during a crisis-affect theory can supplement epidemiologic models and clinical practice to help clinicians and researchers leverage their newfound power to build an ethical and effective response to COVID-19. And since the advent of COVID-19, these disciplines have been granted sweeping cultural and political authority (Limaye et al. Together medicine and epidemiology have expansive affective reach, from individual patients to policies that, if wrong, can cause significant harm. ![]() Quantifying mass death is a deeply emotional and culturally resonant task, the impacts of which social scientists have documented with respect to COVID-19 (Aslam et al. Even epidemiologic data have an affective component. Indeed, growing empirical evidence suggests that the skilful use of emotion by providers can be a powerful tool to promote patient safety and influence patient decision-making (Ferrer and Mendes 2018 Heyhoe et al. Distinct from but indebted to psychology and the cognitive sciences, affect theory affirms that taking stock of the social and political contexts in which certain emotions are considered useful (e.g., righteous anger) or deemed appropriate or inappropriate can help us better understand the present (Sedgwick, 2003).Ī range of feelings arise during clinical care, and an undeniable power can be derived from narrative and cultural representations of the clinical encounter. Central to affect theory is the concept that emotions have histories (Reddy 2001). Specifically, affect theory-broadly, the study of how feelings and emotions shape culture and are reflected in literature, popular media, and politics (Berlant and Greenwald 2012)-offers a dynamic lens through which to make sense of our current economic, political, and epidemiologic moment. Medical and public health professionals overwhelmed by COVID-19 may find guidance and solace by supplementing the empirical with the interpretive. How many deaths are too many for an epidemiologist modelling the trajectory and impact of the pandemic? For a nurse or physician providing palliative care on a COVID-19 unit? For a health aide in a nursing home sieged by the virus? But for many individuals working in healthcare, this message is disconcerting. ![]() This is the optimistic message of our federal and state governments.
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