Doctor named ‘hospital hero’
An emergency medicine physician at Boston Medical Center was recognized as a “hospital hero” in battling the coronavirus pandemic, placing among other top doctors in the nation as part of a spotlight series by U.S. News and World Report.
Dr. Vonzella Bryant, 46, took on a massive influx of sick coronavirus patients in the emergency department at BMC, which is the largest safety net hospital in Boston, often treating patients in underserved communities, a profile from U.S. News says.
“Although the normal chaos of my work had partially prepared me, I had never seen anything like this virus,” Bryant told U.S. News.
“At the hospital, we were being hit all at once with sick, agitated and sometimes combative patients; scared and nervous essential workers; staff with underlying conditions who were afraid of getting the virus; and we were fearful that we’d run out of ICU space,” said Bryant.
She was recognized for her efforts in beating back the pandemic and was named a “hospital hero,” a designation given by U.S. News to honor “countless unsung heroes who are stepping up — often at great personal risk — to keep patients alive and communities safe from COVID-19.”
Bryant’s name is among more than 65 hospital heroes in the nation, including the country’s top infectious disease doctor, Dr. Anthony Fauci and CNN’s Dr. Sanjay Gupta, who were also awarded spots on the U.S. News list.
Bryant is the only doctor in Massachusetts to have made the “hospital heroes list.” Heroes can be nominated to the U.S. News editorial team and can extend beyond the hospital to other healthrelated professions that have been at the forefront of the pandemic.
In addition to her clinical work at Boston Medical Center three days a week, Bryant also teaches Boston University medical students who haven’t been allowed in the hospital since the pandemic.
Bryant is teaching her medical school students what it means to work with a diverse, vulnerable patient population that live in crowded conditions without the financial ability to abide by stay-at-home orders.
Bryant is a wife, daughter and mother to two young children and navigated the balance between her family life, personal safety and work while fighting the pandemic and treating the sickest patients.