The Tale of the frontline workers: Doctors speak on memories related to working in a COVID-19 ward

COVID-19 wards have given stories to not only patients but also to the frontline workers, those that they can never forget. Here’s what Dr. Kanika Gupta and Dr. Disha Suryawanshi said about their experiences related to working in a COVID ward.

There are a lot of things that frontline workers encounter in their day-to-day lives. However, COVID-19 has given varied experiences to them, along with common people. We talked to doctors who narrated stories they can never forget in their lives about working in a COVID ward

Each patient helped me learn something

"I believe that learning has got no age limits. I definitely cannot forget what I learned from the patients while working in the COVID-19 ward. These patients taught me to be empathetic, confident, strong, patient, resilient, and generous. All these learnings are a result of the situations, both, good and bad, that occurred while treating COVID-19 patients during the second wave of Coronavirus.

This is why I also strongly condemn any sort of violence with doctors. Nobody has the right to vandalize the hospital equipment and supplies. Nobody has the right to attack the people who are trying to save your loved ones. Ultimately, I hope that if I learned a few things from my patients, they can also learn a few from me."

- Dr. Kanika Gupta (27), 3rd Year PG resident (Department of Anaesthesiology), Gurgaon, Haryana

That patient was full of life!

"How can I and the staff of the COVID-19 ward, forget that patient who was so full of life! He was a 75-year-old COVID-positive patient who had hypertension, sugar, and other diseases. We were afraid due to this, but he was not. He was very energetic and had become a source of motivation for other patients. He always listened to the advice of doctors and used to do regular exercises.

Not only this, he used to roam in the ward and used to correct people if they were doing exercises the wrong way. He lived in the hospital for 25 days. And, I believe it was also his positive approach towards life that helped him get better, along with our treatment. I have never met such a patient, and I'll never be able to get him out of my memories."

- Dr. Disha Suryawanshi (25) MBBS, Medical officer at a COVID hospital in Jalna, Maharashtra

I had tears in my eyes that day

"I was posted in the ICU and was seeing nearly 5-6 deaths every day. Some days, I was not able to have dinner thinking about the worse situation. I remember there was a COVID-19 patient who wanted to live. He was improving day by day and was keen on going back home. I used to inform his parents about his well-being and had got attached to him in a few days. His zeal for getting better was motivating me to work even hard. Two months went by, and he was still hospitalized for treatment.

One day, during the lunch hour, I was monitoring patients while he removed his oxygen mask. I thought he wanted to eat and hence, would have dropped it off. Hardly did I know that he had got tired of his situation. His condition worsened, and I tried to give him CPR. All in vain. I could not save him. I still don't know why but I had tears in my eyes. All I can say, Please do not take the virus lightly and follow proper COVID-19 protocols. Do the needful while we are trying our best to save lives," - Dr. Sajal Gupta (25), MBBS, Junior Resident, Central Government Hospital, Delhi.

Also Read: The Tale of The frontline workers: A heartfelt talk with the unsung heroes!

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