Dr. Alex Patel, a critical care ICU doctor based in Toronto, Canada, has been on the frontlines of the coronavirus since the pandemic’s first days, and has treated the sickest patients. He returns to talk about what the healthcare industry has learned about the virus in the last 10 months, the winter COVID surge, the ongoing importance of mask-wearing and social distancing, his thoughts on community lockdowns, and the hope he has for the future. He also educates on the vaccines, explaining the differences between the three (Pfizer, Moderna, and AstraZeneca), and shares why he was eager to get vaccinated, including what the first dose has been like for him. Plus, he speaks to the suspected origin of COVID19, why he expects to see another pandemic in this lifetime, and this year’s near absence of influenza.