More concerned not for me

Special patient

Accustomed to the smell of the room, with the regular visit of patients with Covid-19, for 3 weeks, Doctor NXT, Emergency Department, Hospital for Central Tropical Diseases became restless when he saw his teammates still “fighting”. duel outside, himself trapped in 4 walls.

From March 23 until now, from the treating doctor, Dr. T. reluctantly became a Covid-19 patient.

“These days, knitting all over my body is a feeling of unease, extremely urgent when I discover that I have the weapon to fight and I have to sit motionless in an isolated room,” shared Dr. T.

Dr. T. said that from the start of the Covid-19 season, the department’s entire medical team received the order, divided into many teams to be ready to respond. When 16 patients from phase 1 of the epidemic left the hospital, all members of the hospital took a deep breath temporarily but did not relax for long, starting on 5/3, the entire country entered a new phase of the campaign against Covid -19.

Deputy Minister of Health Nguyen Truong Son asked about Dr. T.’s health at the National Hospital for Tropical Diseases. Photo: TB

Also since early March, Dr. T. and nearly 30 colleagues took out suitcases to plug pins into Base 2 of the hospital.

Initially, only 1 to 2 patients were admitted to the hospital every day, but then they increased very rapidly, reaching their peak on March 22, up to 8 patients were transferred to the Central Tropical Diseases Hospital. The difficulty of the doctors also increased accordingly.

Throughout the day, reviewing the patient’s indexes, Dr. T. himself could not recall any food on time and how many nights he slept.

The work continued for almost 3 weeks, until March 22, Dr. T. suddenly felt a sore throat. Having memorized suspicious signs of the disease, he immediately reported to his teammates, isolated himself, and took samples for analysis.

The following day, he received a positive result with the SARS-CoV-2 virus, becoming patient number 116.

Despite his mental preparation, the moment he learned that he was the first medical worker in Vietnam to have Covid-19 it still made him stop for a moment. But then, very quickly, he calmly walked quickly towards the area with the quarantine sign.

“When we worked, we were still joking with each other. By crossing the door of the patient’s room, we understand that we will face the risk of communicable diseases at any time. I know this to determine my own psychology. This is the career, the job I chose, I took the risk, ready to face, so when I know I have Covid-19, I don’t think too much, ”said Dr. T.

However, one thing that made him really concerned and concerned was his fear of infecting his colleagues.

Delicious meals in the hospital.

Dr. T. said that one day he worked too hard, so he couldn’t remember where I was negligent, so he was really concerned about everyone in the same department.

“Because I rested in the same area, I was concerned that the virus would adhere to surfaces like door knobs, countertops, utensils … but not disinfected, I could risk passing the infection on to other doctors. The first day, I couldn’t sleep and felt depressed for the next few days, “recalls Dr. T.

Nor did he dare report bad news to his parents for fear that people would worry. Forever later, when reading the news in the newspaper, new parents or news. Only when the son said: “I am still well, my health is not a cause for concern, my parents are safe”, my grandparents breathed temporarily.

We will fight to the end

On the first day in the isolation room, Dr. T.’s sore throat continued to rise with fever but not more than 38 degrees. Over the next 4-5 days, his entire body was tired, he didn’t bother moving.

The virus also hit his lungs, causing mild pneumonia. Although tired, although tired, each meal he tried to eat all his rice to fight the virus, hoping to recover soon to be outside with his colleagues.

“This is the first time that I have become a patient, but this time, maybe I am a special patient a little more than others, so I received a lot of love and encouragement from my brothers and sisters in the hospital,” Dr. T. touched He said.

Medical personnel in the Emergency Department fertilize rice for the severely ill Covid-19. Photo: Doctor Nguyen Trung Cap

Speaking about the work process in the department, Dr. T. said that at the beginning, there were few patients, one doctor was in charge every day, but since there were 17 patients, he had to divide 3 cases / day, 1 doctor per each case, 3 infirmary. When necessary, the crew will have one more doctor to support, the rest to support outside.

“We have to do this to store as much protective equipment as possible, to prevent a more intense epidemic at the later stage, and to prevent a situation where many infected doctors are still employed. At the beginning of March, at that time, the risk of missing masks was still very high due to a lack of raw materials, “said Dr. T.

To store the protective equipment, the medical staff of the faculty take advantage of the drinking water and always go to the bathroom, avoiding having to change a new game or trying to stop urinating while waiting for their turn.

“Just like that, we parted ways to do it, both groping at the same time, just taking advantage of the experience because this is a new disease, there is no specific medication,” said Dr. T.

Dr. T. said, because every day they wash their hands with antiseptic alcohol several times, everyone’s hands are peeling off the skin.

After the shift, he had no wife and children, but many brothers and sisters have children for weeks that they have not been home, remember that the children only dare to call for a moment to look, ask some questions, and then return with the patient, walking and crying, very hurt.

In emergencies, more doctors and physicians will provide emergency assistance to patients.

“Although it is so difficult, the risk is like that, but all the members of the faculty have not left the position. We determine that this is our job, we must fight to the end, “shared Dr. T.

It was recently announced that Dr. T. was cured and in additional isolation before returning to his department.

Hearing this news, Dr. Do Thi Phuong Mai, Deputy Head of the General Infection Department, burst into tears of joy.

“During the 2 weeks of treatment, I did not see her complain or worry that her condition would worsen. On the contrary, she always felt guilty for not being able to protect herself, so she often asked her colleagues if she had someone. I am contagious,” he shared. Dr. Mai.

Thuy Hanh