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TRAUMATIZED doctors have exposed the horrific reality of the frontline of Covid-19, saying, “Putting someone in a body bag … is something no training can prepare you for.”
Beleaguered medical staff warn that they are seeing “many more” people with the virus who are not passing through the emergency department at our major hospitals amid the third wave of the pandemic.
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Heartbroken family members of Covid patients are facing being denied entry into wards to say goodbye for infection control reasons.
Now brave nurses have lifted the lid on the “huge emotional cost” of providing palliative support to Covid-19 victims who are unable to spend their last moments with their loved ones.
‘GREAT EMOTIONAL TOLL’
Emotional nurse Fiona Rogan, who works at Tallaght Hospital in Dublin, said: “Everything since Christmas has been really horrible.
“He’s very, very busy, this third wave is unlike anything we imagined or thought would happen.
“The bottom line would be, let’s say like today, putting someone in a body bag and knowing that you are the last person to see them is something that no training can prepare you for.”
Fiona spoke about RTE Investigates: Covid-19 – The Third Wave, which took viewers inside Tallaght University Hospital as front-line staff faced the peak of the pandemic last month.
Exposing the reality behind the grim headlines and daily virus numbers, the documentary showed hero doctors and nurses fighting to keep Covid patients alive amid the third wave.
And Irish father Gareth Grainger recounted how he sent “goodbye” text messages to his loved ones when his Covid-19 situation rapidly deteriorated.
Grainger tested positive for Covid-19 five weeks ago along with his wife Hazel and their three children, and the family initially attempted to take care of themselves at home before he was hospitalized and admitted to the ICU.
After a week, he was finally well enough to be moved to another room.
The relieved Gareth has now been transferred to the Peamount Healthcare rehab center as he continues to recover.
The beleaguered doctors told what a revolving door looks like in the ICU, and onlookers see Gareth Grainger’s bay filling up immediately as he leaves critical care.
‘INCREDIBLE’ PRESSURE
The pressure on the bed space is described as “relentless”, with only three of the hospital’s 12 operating rooms in operation when the documentary was shot in January.
The other nine have been repurposed as makeshift rooms to absorb excess non-Covid ICU patients.
By mid-January ICUs were full and many hospitals were forced to use their augmentation capacity, leading to some operating rooms being converted to ICU wards at Tallaght University Hospital.
Doctors emphasize that the virus is now affecting more younger people, with patients presenting to emergency departments much sicker and in greater numbers than before.
Emergency department consultant Dr. Jean O’Sullivan recounted how they have lost colleagues to the deadly virus.
Dr Syed Waqqar Ali, a Pakistani native living in Tyrrelstown in Dublin, was a trusted surrogate physician at several hospitals, including Tallaght.
He succumbed to the virus after a three-month battle in the intensive care unit at Mater Hospital.
LOSING COLLEAGUES
Speaking about the loss of Dr. Syed and the daily danger that front-line physicians face, Dr. O’Sullivan said: “Right now, we have a third of our medical staff who are sick with Covid.
“While we are used to being busy and used to dealing with very sick patients, this is the first time that staff have really risked their own lives.
“And every time a patient comes in with Covid, particularly one who is young, the staff looks at that patient and wonders if it will be them next week if they get Covid.
And sadly, a few months ago we lost a colleague, Dr. Syed Waqqar Ali. We were all very, very sad to see him die. “
Her colleague Emma Byrne, a clinical nursing facilitator, also spoke about having to say goodbye to Covid victims instead of their family members.
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She said: “I have done it several times where I was the last person to be with a dying patient.
“And it must have been very strange for that person to have a nurse in a mask, gown and gloves sitting next to him when they are taking their last breath.”
Emma describes it as a privilege rather than a burden to play this role, adding, “I try not to really think about it. I just move on to the next patient … You try to leave it at the door, but sometimes you can’t. “
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