Inside the room COVID-19 | Coronavirus Outbreak News, The Indian Express

A ward in a Delhi government hospital. Express photo of Amit Mehra

Soaked with sweat after a tiring shift, every night, she returns to the Dental Block of her hospital to sleep. The glasses and mask stretched over his face all day leave bruises; The heat, she says, has triggered the pimples. Your limbs ache from wearing an oversized PPE suit. What she longs for is a bath, but she also fears it. COVID-19 LIVE updates

“My room is not a bedroom, it is a laboratory. There are three bathrooms, there is no bathroom … I use the water jet to shower. Then I wash my clothes near the toilet and hang it on a railing where the clothes of 17 other nurses , all of them exposed to patients with COVID-19 all day, are also left to dry. That’s the time when I break down every day, “says the 50-year-old nurse who was assigned to the special ward of a dedicated COVID hospital -19 in the National Capital on April 4. “Give lagta hai, rona aata hai (I feel scared, I feel like crying) … But I only take a painkiller and sleep.”

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Elsewhere in the city, a 25-year-old doctor, who has been working in ICU COVID-19 at a Delhi government tertiary care hospital since March 26, relies on a pill to keep himself safe. “I have been taking a dose of hydroxychloroquine. I went to 15 stores to get it, but it wasn’t available anywhere. I finally had to borrow from a friend.

Its effectiveness in the treatment of COVID-19 has not been proven, but it is recommended. I know it can have serious side effects. I read that a doctor in Guwahati died after consuming it. But I’m taking risks, “he says.
On a continuous 14-day shift in ward COVID-19 before he takes a break from quarantine quarantine, the graduate medical resident of the internal medicine department says he loves his job but is afraid of putting the lives of his elderly parents at risk. . in danger. “The ICU is the most infectious area. I have to insert tubes through the patient’s mouth into their airways, put food tubes, catheter, if necessary … I am constantly exposed to their body fluids, “he says, adding:” My parents are very paranoid and they insisted on taking hydroxychloroquine. tablets too. But I didn’t leave them. “

As the country remains confined, with people being prevented from leaving their homes, a large army of doctors and nurses make their way to COVID wards every day and night, treating patients even as they fight their own fears With new coronavirus cases in India exceeding 6,000, the burden of treatment has largely fallen on the country’s government health system and its overworked staff. In Delhi, with more than 20 virus hotspots and 14 deaths, at least six hospitals / blocks have been dedicated to treating almost 1,000 COVID-19 patients and thousands of suspected cases.

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“The six floors of my hospital are full of people, there is almost no social distancing to happen. Ambulances are leaving family after family, all suspects. I am not on a PPE team all the time, so when I come in contact with cases Suspects, I usually only have a surgical gown and a three-layer mask for protection. If any of them cough, I shudder … At times like these, I just plug in my headphones, listen to the songs of Mohammed Rafi for a few minutes, calm down and I go back to work, “says the 50-year-old nurse. .

Before shift

These days, the 25-year-old doctor begins his day with a WhatsApp video call to his parents. Since the Cardiac Care Unit at her hospital was transformed into an ICU COVID-19, she has moved to a separate floor from her home.

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“I tell them to prepare my food and leave it at the door. They gave me the option to stay in a hotel, but my family was very concerned and insisted that I stay home, “he says. He also calls some friends, mostly doctors, across the country, to catch up on them. “They’ve been my support. I have to admit, I’ve been calling them more than usual,” he says. The graduate medical resident, who has now been on the job for three years, has been working three shifts: 9 a.m. at 3 p.m., from 3 p.m. at 9 p.m., and the night shift every other day, from 9 p.m. at 9 a.m., after which you have a day off.

Given the infectious nature of the disease, separation from the family is a reality for many doctors across the country, such as for a 40-year-old cardiac surgeon from a Delhi government hospital who has also been staying on a separate floor in his house.

“In the morning, my daughters, ages 5 and 8, come out onto the balcony and we scream and talk. They have also invented a game: they have called me a crown and they pretend they want to catch me, ”says the doctor, who volunteered for a position in room COVID-19 in early March.

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“The distance was necessary because my father, in his 70s, has lung and heart problems … I have worked in tuberculosis wards before, so my family is used to taking precautions. But this time it’s a pandemic and the stress levels are higher, “he smiles.

For the 50-year-old nurse, a diabetic mother and a 10-year-old son at home made her choose the hostel facilities at her hospital. “I have been in the profession for 22 years. I got married late to focus on my career. My shifts have generally been long, but this is the first time I have been away from home for so long, ”says the nurse who comes from Goa.

Outside the Rajiv Gandhi Cancer Hospital in Delhi, which has more than 100 COVID-19 patients. (Express photo by Amit Mehra)

So now she spends her mornings talking to her son and husband, often “hiding my concerns.” “They read that the staff of the Delhi State Cancer Institute was getting infected, they asked me all kinds of things. I’m just saying everything is fine. I also told them that I don’t have a phone with me, so don’t call me until 10 p.m. But I have one; I just don’t want to be called when I’m busy with patients or when I’m too stressed out, “she says.” Since it’s the Lenten season, I also pray for my family’s safety before I go to work. I’ve bought some dried fruit and fruits from outside that I eat to strengthen my immunity, ”she says.

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When he enters the bathroom in the Dental Block to cool off, he says, he flinches at the sight of the bucket, cup, and towel. “They were used by the staff here before us. I don’t know if they have been disinfected, “she says.
But she is relieved that she doesn’t have to come home after the shift. “Two nurses at the hospital have been traveling from Noida every day. Their families are exposed to the virus. Once my 14-day duty is over, I wait for them to test me before sending me home. The 50 nurses who worked before us were not screened, simply sent to 14-day quarantine. “

Inside the room

According to the rules, and according to reports from doctors and nurses The Sunday Express spoke to, COVID-19 rooms in the Capital are “well-ventilated spaces with beds placed at least six feet away and without additional furniture.” They are disinfected with sodium hypochlorite several times a day. Separate toilets would be ideal, but in most places, at least three to six patients share a facility.

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“Rooms cannot have air conditioners because that would lead to stagnant air, an ideal environment for the virus to thrive. This also means that a doctor or nurse cannot wear a PPE suit for more than two hours, because it becomes very uncomfortable in this weather. It is easier in colder countries, ”says the 40-year-old doctor, whose first challenge upon arrival at the hospital is to ensure social distancing between the large groups of patients who arrive at the reception every morning. The 450-bed hospital he works in has 200 COVID-19 patients now.

“I take two rounds of the rooms in the day. I use the stethoscope for auscultation, I have to come into contact with positive patients and suspicious cases, “he says.

About seven people, including nurses, security and cleaning staff, are present in the hospital’s COVID room at any time. When not in the room (there are six COVID rooms in the hospital, including the ICU and the Flu Clinic), the doctor works in a “COVID-19 office” that was recently established at the hospital.

“Recently, a man who had returned from Thailand and had symptoms of COVID-19 was still holding his young son in his arms. I had to advise him for a long time before he agreed to let him go, ”he says. Patients with fever, cough, and sore throat first come to the hospital’s Flu Clinic to be tested. At least 50 patients have tested positive in the hospital every day.

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“Then I go on to do an inventory of the PPE, of which about 15 are used each shift, and then I go through the patient files and finally inform all my staff – nurses, room kids, cleaners – about how to deal with COVID-19 patients I can also easily tell when one of them is scared, it’s on their faces. I try to be cheerful with them, that helps, “says the doctor.

For the Goa nurse, “fear” is primarily a sinking feeling when she dons the pink kurta-pajama uniform in her hospital every day. “He is washed in all the other nurses’ clothes. I rub a lot of disinfectant on him,” she says. Her hospital has 600 active and suspected cases of COVID-19, while her ward has six positive patients.

The Assam resident who had tested positive for coronavirus was found lying in the isolation room bathroom with a neck injury. (Archive / Representative)

“We are four nurses in one shift, and only the person who enters the room receives a PPE kit. The rest are in surgical gowns and masks. But suspicious cases are going to hospital all day, “she says. She is part of a group of 120 nurses who work at the hospital in three shifts: from 7 a.m. at 2.30 p.m., from 2.30 p.m. at 10 p.m. and from 10 p.m. at 7 a.m.
For a 32-year-old nurse, who is now home after completing her 14-day shift, it was “putting on and taking off the PPE that left me anxious … We didn’t have a separate room to change, around the six of us We did it together. I washed my hands after removing every part of the equipment, “says the nurse who hails from Kerala and who has been working in a Delhi government hospital for the past six years.

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A single mother who lives with her elderly mother and son says she stays in a separate room in her home, uses a different bathroom, and pours Dettol over her shoes and clothes every day. “Unlike doctors, nurses are not screened after the 14-day shift ends. There were also no thermal detection facilities at my hospital. So I continue with precautions, “she says. However, she says, she is relieved not to have to wear gloves until her next 14-day shift. “I am allergic to latex powder that is used while wearing gloves. My hands would keep itching all day. I washed them all the time.

Washing your hands 20 to 25 times is also one of the many precautions that the 25-year-old doctor takes every day when service begins. “Even in the 20 minutes it takes to wear PPE, I wash my hands five and six times. Then I go to the ICU, where I now have four patients, ”he says.

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His three years on the job have seen him put in infectious wards before and “he’s no longer afraid of work.” “I once pricked myself with a needle used for a suspected HIV patient. It was 3 in the morning and I rushed to get tested. The results took six hours to arrive. Fortunately, it was negative. Such incidents will happen, it can’t be helped, “he says. He will be screened for the virus when his 14-day duty ends.

With no family assistants for patients, doctors and nurses end up doing a lot more work. “Changing the diapers of elderly patients, emptying the urine bags … all this carries possibilities of infection.”

And then there are the “VIP patients”. “Some of these patients are frustrated that they have not found a place in private hospitals. Food complaints are a constant, “he says.

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VIP patients have also made life difficult for the 50-year-old Goa nurse. “They all have cell phones, and they keep calling landlines and our cell phones, asking for chai, juice, their reports. Once, a patient accused me of hiding their reports … They complain about the cleaner, electrician, room boy, and they blame the nurses for everything. Hum kisko bolein (Who are we complaining to?) She says.

Serve food to patients three times a day in disposable plates and cups. “He comes from the hospital kitchen: roti-sabzi, dal-chawal. If a patient is diabetic or has any other underlying condition, the diet changes accordingly, “he explains.

Hyderabad: Hospital staff are seen outside the special isolation room created to treat any suspected case of
the coronavirus (CoV), in Hyderabad, Monday, January 27, 2020. (PTI Photo) (PTI1_27_2020_000087B)

The 40-year-old doctor says it is normal for patients to feel frustrated.

“They are far from their family, there is no emotional support. During an important part of my shift, I double as a counselor. Recently, a young patient sat on the windowsill, spread his legs, and threatened to jump. I had to catch him. Later I realized that I was a drug addict and I was experiencing withdrawals, ”he says.

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As for his own mental health, says the 40-year-old doctor, “Knowing the science behind the spread of the virus and not relying on” WhatsApp and the science of Facebook “keeps me sane. I’ve been following reports from Wuhan and Italy. “It will be a long journey. We cannot lose steam so early. My thoughts are similar to those of any soldier.”
To keep his staff healthy, the 40-year-old doctor also makes sure he eats on time.

“I get my food from home,” he says, adding that the staff take turns eating and guarantee social distancing.
The 50-year-old nurse says that food is something they don’t worry about. “We recently received meals from the Taj hotel. It was very tasty, ”she says. However, she has been careful not to drink too much water to avoid using the bathroom. “We have to remove the entire suit to use the bathroom and then disinfect it. Also, going to the bathroom, which the other nurses have also used, only increases my stress. COVID shift mein is physically zyaada mental stress hai (There is more mental stress than physical stress during the COVID shift). “

So what does she do to combat it? “In addition to listening to old Hindi songs, I lean on my 22-year-old friend. We start together as nurses. We share our concerns and motivate each other, “she says. “I like to take care of people and that’s why I became a nurse. But we also need a little attention.

After shift

After a long day in the hospital, which can range from six to 14 hours, the 25-year-old doctor begins his “homecoming routine.” “First I shower in the hospital and inform my parents that I am leaving so they can leave my food outside my room. There is a disinfectant in my bag, in my car, at the entrance of my house, in the door of my room and in my bathroom. I use them all. I keep used dishes and clothes in a polythene bag outside my room. There is a separate bathroom to wash these, “he says.” My parents often ask me if the risk is worth it. I think it is. “

Kasturba Hospital in Mumbai on Saturday. (Express photo / Ganesh Shirsekar)

How often does the fear of contracting the virus cross your mind? “I have thought about it many times. If that happens, I will be admitted to the Max or Medanta Hospital, ”says the 25-year-old.

As for the 50-year-old nurse, when she returned to the Dental Block on Thursday night, she was filled with hope. “There was a protest from off duty nurses for accommodation. Doctors are being housed in five-star hotels, why not us? Today we were told that some of us will be moved to a new location, where there will be two nurses per room and an attached bathroom, “she says. “I want to take a proper bath.”

Until then, the pain relieving and Mohd Rafi melodies will accompany you for another night.

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