Russ's Ravings: What A Difference A Week Makes

Editor's note: The following is Patch Field Editor Russ Crespolini's, hopefully, weekly column. It is reflective of his opinion alone.

This has been a really weird year for me. First I had that whole brain tumor and brain surgery thing to deal with and then just as I was getting back into the swing of this the world started ending.

Not exactly how I thought things were going to go.

So that is what my column will be about this week, subverting expectations. Now, I could spend my time telling you about how it is important to social distance and wash your hands and follow the guidelines best we can if we don't want this to last six months. But I figure you've heard enough about that.

I could tell you about homeschooling and the different challenges that presents. Especially for someone like me who has never actually been busier either with reporting or transitioning my college students to an online class mode.

But no, I am going to share my thoughts on entitlement.

Surprisingly I got quite a few emails and phone calls this week as the number of people who tested positive for novel coronavirus, or COVID-19, rose significantly in the areas I cover. The subject of these emails were people asking, demanding, or incredulously complaining that the names of the patients were not being released to the public.

So I thought it might be a good time to explain why this is the case. First, is that these poor people are sick. Their illness, like any medical issue any of us has ever face, is a private matter.

Unless you are an idiot like me who writes about it as part of their job.

You don't have a right to view their medical status just as the rest of us don't have a right to search your medical history for what that cream you got in college was for.

I understand the argument. You want to know if you came in contact with that person. Well, if you did, the health department would contact you. Or maybe you want details like age and preexisting conditions. Sometimes you get that. But the only time you get that is if the patient or their family authorizes it.

If you want to know how some of these patients are handling their situation, if you want a window into the experience should read these stories:

• 'No One Knows What We're Dealing With:' Coronavirus Positive RN
• Help Morristown Nurses Get Coronavirus Safety Supplies
• NJ Man With Coronavirus: I 'Argued' To Even Get Tested

But the truth of the matter is you do not have a right to this information. Even if you aren't planning on showing up with pitchforks and torches to run them out of town. Just like you don't have the right to put people at risk by playing shirts versus skins in the park or abusing employees at medical centers and food stores.

What you are entitled to is to be appreciative of what you have. I know this is scary for all of us, not just because of the health risks. We worry about our children getting back to the routines and the support system they deserve. We worry about our careers and how to pay for what we need when there is so much economic uncertainty. It is hard to be appreciative. And it hard not to want to point fingers and blame and make demands.

But really the only thing we need to be demanding of ourselves and those around us is patience. Because while it may be free, there is a limited supply.

Russ Crespolini is a Field Editor for Patch Media, adjunct professor and college newspaper advisor. His columns have won awards from the National Newspaper Association and the New Jersey Press Association.

He writes them in hopes of connecting with readers and engaging with them. And because it is cheaper than therapy. He can be reached at russ.crespolini@patch.com