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Of: Amanda hallsten
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The overcrowding in Stockholm’s intensive care unit puts pressure on an already weary care staff.
Many testify to long shifts with no breaks and canceled vacations.
– We crawl on the ground, day after day, while people still go out and shop for Christmas. Now that we’ve hit the roof, it’s really tough, says intensive care nurse Johan Enander.
After 12.5 hours, the intensive care staff at Karolinska Hospital in Huddinge and Solna leave. The staff Aftonbladet spoke with to testify to a pressure situation, with more patients than there is space.
– I haven’t had a lunch break all day. Sometimes I try to sit down to rest, when possible, says a VAT nurse who wants to remain anonymous.
The number of confirmed corona cases continues to rise in the country. In Stockholm, the healthcare situation is under severe pressure and the threshold for patients receiving intensive care in Stockholm has been raised, something Aftonbladet previously reported on.
– There are many elderly people in our department who should be sent to geriatrics, but there is no place there either, he says.
Photo: LOTTE FERNVALL
Anneli Setterkrans, Iva’s nurse, comes off her shift at Huddinge’s intensive care unit when Aftonbladet meets her.
Feeling anxious about a third wave
Anneli Setterkrans, Iva’s nurse, comes off her shift at Huddinge’s intensive care unit when Aftonbladet meets her. Anneli says that the staff feel tired, after weeks of long working hours, in a room where the number of patients does not decrease.
– Those who work here full time do not know when and if they can be free during Christmas and New Years. Many have canceled their vacations, Anneli says.
Staff say they feel anxious when they are working on something that currently has no end date.
– We hope there won’t be a third wave after Christmas, says Anneli.
Many patients are young
Johan Enander, an intensive care nurse at Karolinska Hospital in Solna, confirms the image provided by colleagues at Huddinge.
– For each work shift I work as three intensive care nurses. I will be aware that there are medications available, that they are administered in the right way, that the pumps work. If you make a mistake in the intensive care unit, it can go very wrong, says Johan.
Photo: Private / Mathilda N.
Intensive care nurse Johan Enander.
According to Johan, the age of patients in intensive care varies.
– Some patients we serve are between twenty and thirty years old, says Johan.
You want more people to follow the restrictions and take a step further in case of congestion during Christmas shopping. He also wants the government to decide on stricter restrictions.
– We crawl on the ground, day after day. Who should be admitted, who is entitled to intensive care and who is not? We put out fires. It’s already exhausting with one patient and now we have three. We are not enough, says Johan.
In addition to a description of the heavy lifting, which causes anxiety and concern for many of those who work, Johan says it does not feel ethically correct.
– Family members come to say goodbye, wearing a mask, visor and protective clothing. It’s not worthy, says Johan.
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