Facing an ‘unprecedented challenge’
A first-person account from a Beth Israel doctor
An emergency medicine attending physician at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center spoke with the Herald’s Rick Sobey on Sunday about the challenge of treating suspected coronavirus patients while also making sure hospital workers and other patients don’t contract the highly contagious disease.
Here’s how Dr. Carrie Tibbles, who’s also the director of graduate medical education at Beth Israel, describes the escalating situation at Boston-area hospitals:
We have been incredibly consumed by this, all-hands-on-deck. All day, every day. I think we are all on heightened awareness.
While as emergency physicians we are well trained to respond to incidents that have a large number of patients, this really is an unprecedented challenge.
It is very clear to me already that vulnerable populations — the elderly, homeless patients, chronically ill — need extra support, and as many of us, I am particularly concerned about these patients.
As an emergency physician, I’m used to taking care of vulnerable populations. We’re also used to increasing resources to take care of patients all at once.
But this type of infectious risk is unprecedented to me.
We now have a unique, specific area where we evaluate patients before they even come into our waiting room — a special triage area for people with respiratory symptoms, fever or if they’re concerned they were exposed to the virus.
This space reduces the exposure to other patients and other health care workers.
We’ve trained our staff how to wear personal protective equipment — a gown, two sets of gloves, surgical mask and visor — how to put it on and take it off. I’ve been studying every day and learning about the virus. I think I studied more before my shift than I have needed to in years.
It’s so important to keep ourselves healthy to make sure we can take care of people, and also so we don’t put our families at risk.
We’re telling workers to take their scrubs off before they get home to limit exposure to their family. They should take a shower right away.
Everyone is trying to make the best decisions as they can for their families. In my case, my 17-yearold son has hypoplastic left heart syndrome and only has one ventricle.
Through multiple open heart surgeries, he really is a medical miracle, but I am very worried about how he would fare should he get sick, so earlier this week, my dad brought him up to my parents’ house on a lake in northern Maine, a remote area.
I do think we are working hard to keep each other and our families safe, while we deliver the best care we can to our patients.
I’ve been incredibly impressed by the work ethic, dedication and skills of my colleagues, and we’re all coming together to address this crisis in the community.
While the virus is very contagious, goodwill and generosity are too, and I am definitely seeing that when I am on a shift.