In the middle of August, I spent seven days straight taking care of just part of just one of Memorial Hermann’s many COVID-19 units. I personally took care of dozens of patients. Over 90 percent of the patients I cared for were unvaccinated. Of those, most were young - 60 percent were between 20 and 50 years old; I’m not a pediatrician, but the pediatric units are also being hit hard with COVID-19. The majority of the patients I cared for who were vaccinated were discharged within one to two days.
I must admit I mentally prepared myself to face a lot of obstinacy, conspiracy theories and mistrust from my patients during this surge. I mean, this is a self-selected population who chose not to be vaccinated, despite it being recommended ad nauseam by the medical community for the last eight months. Yes, I have had a few patients like that, but I was surprised that was not the case for the majority. On the surface, the world appears so polarized, but at the end of the day, we are all human and want the same thing — health and happiness. These people are so sick and feel so miserable. They are terrified because they’re in trouble, and they have finally realized it.
A paraphrased compilation of the conversations I had at least 20 times per day:
Are you a health care worker who'd like to share your experience working on the front lines of COVID-19?
Email our COVID editor, Maggie Gordon, at maggie.gordon@chron.com with "COVID Story" in the subject line.
“When will my breathing get better?”
“I don’t know. Every person is different.”
"When will I get to go home?"
COVID HELP DESK: Is the vaccine booster shot the same as the first doses?
“When your oxygen is better.” (Thinking to myself: If it gets better. You might need a ventilator soon.)
“When will my oxygen get better?”
“It’s difficult to predict. A few days, a week, two or three weeks? Some patients have stayed for months.”
“Am I getting better at all?”
“Well, you’re not getting worse, so let’s try to focus on that.”
“Am I going to be OK?”
“We’re doing everything we can to get you better.” (Thinking to myself: Maybe? Maybe not? I hope so?)
“But really, do you think I’ll be alright?”
“It’s too early to say right now. We’re doing everything we can. Time will tell.”
“Can I get the vaccine now?”
“No, it’s too late.”
“How soon can I get it?”
“After you recover.”
“When will that be?”
“Again, I don’t know. COVID-19 takes time and is unpredictable.”
“Doctor, am I going to die?”
“You are very sick and that is a real possibility, but we are doing everything we can to get you through this. We have to take this one day at a time”
“What if I get worse?”
“We’ll have to consider putting you on a ventilator.”
“How long would I be on a ventilator?”
“At least two to four weeks, maybe longer.”
“What would be my chances of making it?”
“If you’re sick enough to require a ventilator, the survival rate has been less than 20 percent.”
“Can you check on my daughter? She’s in the ER right now.”
“Yes, I can.”
“Can you check on my husband? He’s getting intubated in the ICU right now.”
“Yes, I can do that.”
“Hello? Hi, Mr. So-and-so. This is Dr. Zeisig. I’m calling to tell you we just had to emergently intubate your wife and move her to the ICU. Her oxygen was dangerously low.”
“Oh my God!” (Hear tears through the phone).
“I’m so sorry.”
“Hello? Hi, Ms. So-and-so. This is Dr. Zeisig. Your father went into cardiac arrest. We couldn’t get him back. I’m so sorry.” (Hear weeping through the phone).
COVID-19 is a monster.
During this surge, I was prepared to convince and educate my patients about any and every treatment we were giving. Again, there were a few who made helping them difficult. A couple patients became irate, yelling, “Why have you not gotten me better yet? I’ve been here two weeks and I was healthy before!” Really? The nerve. Welcome to the pandemic.
I don’t engage the nonsense or any degree of politicization. That’s like saying diabetes or cancer is political. Clearly it is not, and neither is this. We don’t have time for ridiculous conversations right now. That being said, I have found that the majority, unprompted, tell me they regret not getting the vaccine and ask me when they can get it. These people passed up a safe, non-experimental vaccine that is 95 percent effective in preventing hospitalization and death, and yet now they are eager to get it ASAP. And, not only that, they are also eager to try any and every possible treatment we offer, even the experimental ones. Most patients did 100 percent of what we asked and recommended out of pure desperation. The looks of despair and regret on many of their faces will forever be burned into my brain.
I was prepared to have my emotional guard up so I could mentally endure the conspiracy theories and being second-guessed constantly. What made each day even more difficult than I expected is that I didn’t have to do that very often. Instead, my patients tapped into the little emotional energy I had left to keep offering empathy. I gave them everything I have, because that’s who I am — who we all are as healthcare providers — and I actually don’t know how to turn off that part, no matter how exhausted I am. I celebrated and cheered on their small victories when we were able to lower their supplemental oxygen after many days, and I shared in their misery when things were not looking good, even when it just meant listening or being present in the silence. They told me how appreciative they were of all we were doing and how thankful they were that I was their doctor. And that’s all fine and wonderful. That’s why we all went into the medical field. This is what we do every day, without discrimination, because we took an oath to help every single patient in our care to the best of our ability.
But we are also human and allowed to have our own feelings. And quite honestly, I’m mad. I’m upset with patients for not listening when it mattered. I’m frustrated that society has gotten their “medical advice” from politicians and social media clickbait instead of medical experts for the last year and a half. Why did physicians and scientists spend their entire young adulthood getting an education if so many don’t care to listen to their clinical training and expertise? I’m mad that a small minority of (extremely vocal) physicians have gotten swept up into the political games, causing irreparable harm to the public. Above all, I’m mad I have to worry about my unvaccinated toddler’s health and social activities again. I’m left feeling more defeated for my patients, myself, and my coworkers than I have at any other point in the pandemic. Know that my sentiment is being echoed loudly in almost every physician forum, meeting, Facebook group and conversation between any two hospital healthcare workers right now. It didn’t have to be like this. It shouldn’t be like this. This was preventable.
As a full-time hospitalist for the last year and a half, I — together with my colleagues — have personally taken care of hundreds of hospitalized patients with COVID-19. We are also nine months into vaccinating about half of Texas. You know how many hospitalized patients I’ve personally cared for with serious side effects from the vaccine? Zero.
When cases were low before the delta variant, the decision for all of us felt like it was vaccine vs. no vaccine. The situation has changed. Due to rapid uncontrolled spread, the decision now is vaccine vs. COVID-19 infection. And trust me, you’re going to want that vaccine. How each of us fares COVID-19 is not something to roll the dice on, let alone during a time when there may not be a bed, a nurse or a doctor to efficiently take care of you.
So, I urge everyone: If you trust us enough to rush to us when you’re sick, which means you trust us enough to try to save your life, then trust us now. Help us save your life now, before it may be too late.
People of all ages are needlessly dying, every day. Healthcare workers are breaking (and quitting the business), every day. Gone are the days of feeling like “healthcare heroes.” If anything, we are more like captives of the pandemic at this point. But we’re not looking for your sympathy, or your praise for that matter. What we want is action and changed behavior. This pandemic life we’re all living is not sustainable. We have to stop killing ourselves and each other, both figuratively and literally. We can do that by all getting vaccinated and listening to what the majority of medical experts, organizations and agencies have been and keep saying.
At least for now, the vaccine is working extremely well to prevent severe illness and death. When a new variant comes along that requires us to adjust the vaccine, we will. But we have to start by simply trusting and being patient with the science and the process.
Please. Go. Get. Vaccinated. Stay safe. And wear a mask. I promise it’s much more comfortable than the ventilator.
Dr. Nicole Zeisig is a Hospitalist/Internal Medicine Physician at Memorial Hermann Sugar Land Hospital
"between" - Google News
August 30, 2021 at 06:03PM
https://ift.tt/3sWRqFg
Real conversations between a Houston doctor and her COVID patients: 'It didn't have to be like this' - Houston Chronicle
"between" - Google News
https://ift.tt/2WkNqP8
https://ift.tt/2WkjZfX
Bagikan Berita Ini
0 Response to "Real conversations between a Houston doctor and her COVID patients: 'It didn't have to be like this' - Houston Chronicle"
Post a Comment