Now, a year later, we’ve turned back to those essential workers to check in. Some have changed jobs. Some have lost friends and family to the disease. They all kept going to work. We asked them how things have evolved over the last 12 months, what they’re worrying about now, and if they see any hope on the horizon as vaccines become more broadly available. These are their stories, in their own words.
Interviews by Elena Gooray, Abraham Gutman, Erica Palan, and Sandra Shea. Quotes have been condensed for length and clarity. TIM TAI / Staff Photographer Patricia Henwood, an emergency medicine physician at Jefferson University Hospital, is focused on vaccine now. It is critically important to continue to maintain distancing and masking, and be patient until we can get more vulnerable people vaccinated and get vaccinations scaled up.