Personal perspective of a front-liner

Medical personnel often wear scrubs, or white coats, to prevent outside pathogens from being introduced to hospitals and also to serve as a means of identifying medical workers.

As of now, there are over 1,000 confirmed COVID-19 cases in Pierce County. Hundreds of medical professionals work tirelessly on the front line while risking exposure each day in their endeavors to mitigate this crisis. Among these front-liners is Miles Ching, a nocturnist, or night shift hospitalist, working for Franciscan Health at St. Joseph’s hospital in Tacoma.

On a daily basis, Ching sees around four-seven patients of varying degrees of COVID-19 risk. “When I see a patient who is not suspected of having COVID-19, I will always have a surgical mask, an eye shield, then an N95 underneath my surgical mask, and rubber gloves as well,” Ching stated. An N95 mask is a type of respiratory protection equipment that is designed to fit the face of its wearer and acts as an effective filter, blocking 95% of 0.3 micron test particles. It is recommended by the CDC as a sufficient protective measure against COVID-19. “These are generally considered adequate for these patients.”

In addition to low-risk cases, Ching also sees patients suspected of COVID-19 and those who have already tested positive. When he sees these patients, Ching wears a disposable gown and a CAPR. A CAPR is a type of face

Personal perspective of a front-liner during the COVID-19 pandemic

article and photo by Sofia Guerra, originally published 4/24/20

shield made of plastic that covers the face, creating a seal. It also includes a helmet that creates positive air pressure, pushing air out of the system and preventing particles from entering. “It limits any droplets from coming in contact with my face, and it also limits any droplets from entering in the openings, which significantly reduces any chance of exposure or contracting COVID-19,” he said.

As a nocturnist, Ching’s shift lasts from 8:30 pm to 8:30 am. “During my shift, I’ll see probably four-five [newly admitted] patients, plus check up on an additional one-two already admitted patients, looking at symptoms, like a drop in blood pressure, shortness of breath… Throughout my twelve-hour shift, I will probably spend four or so hours at the bedside with a patient, communicating with the nurse,” Ching reported. During these hours spent in the hospital, Ching and other front liners are at a constant risk of exposure.

In addition to the hours spent in the hospital, Ching also works for eight or so hours in his office. “Actually, most of my time is spent documenting and writing orders for these patients, answering phone calls about the patients, from the office,” he said. However, even while in a large and relatively safer space, Ching must always wear personal protective equipment like a surgical mask and maintain a distance of at least six feet between himself and all other colleagues.

Working as a front-liner has resulted in the integration of near-extreme sanitary measures into Ching’s everyday life. “When I arrive at the hospital, there is just one entrance that we use," he said. They will always screen us for temperatures and symptoms, and hand us a mask to use.” Throughout the day, Ching washes his hands frequently and The sanitation process Ching undergoes returning home is even more elaborate. “It’s quite an ordeal, leaving the hospital,” he said. “When I get to the car, I sanitize everything again. When I arrive home, the first thing I do is leave the shoes and the boot I wear in the hospital outside of the house, then I take off all the dirty clothes and throw them in the wash. From there, I shower straight away. I don’t come in contact with my family till after.” These practices have become essential in keeping Ching and his family as safe as possible.

"It was difficult in the beginning when we still didn't have the equipment to treat the patients. The only downside there was to helping was when we simply didn't have the equipment to help."

Recently, Ching has been ordered to selfisolate as a result of potential exposure to a confirmed COVID-19 case. Because the patient was not initially suspected of COVID-19, Ching had only the lesser level of personal protective equipment, excluding a gown and CAPR. “The patient came in with an unusual presentation. She didn’t have any cough, no shortness of breath; she just had bleeding. But on review of the history, three weeks prior she was exposed to COVID-19 and did have symptoms at the time.”

There are three levels of exposure that are taken into consideration when someone is advised to self-isolate. The first is low risk, which is usually described as a situation in which only some small protective measures are not taken. Medium risk can be characterized by the lack of a major protective measure, such as an eye shield or mask for a patient or doctor, with an extended exposure time. A high risk exposure occurs when no personal protective measures are taken.

Ching’s exposure is considered low risk. His self-isolation requires that he wear a mask when outdoors and closely monitor for any fevers, coughing, sore throat, or other symptoms for 14 days following his exposure. “I am still able to work at the office, but must be careful to limit contact with patients,” he said.

Despite the gravity of his situation and role in the pandemic, Ching keeps his morale up by devoting himself to his work. “The good thing about going to work and seeing patients that need your help is knowing that you really do have a purpose,” Ching explained. “It helps for me not to stay home the whole time, to go out and do something about this.”

“It was difficult in the beginning when we still didn’t have the equipment to treat the patients," he continued. "The only downside there was to helping was when we simply didn’t have enough equipment to help with. But it really has gotten a lot better, and the community is a big help.” Ching expressed gratitude for the community’s action in providing resources for hospitals. As an example, his own daughter helps by hand sewing masks from cotton shirts.

“We do what we can,” Ching stated. “It may be frightening and difficult, but we do what we can.”

Tacoma students react to COVID-19 school closures

by Lauren Cook, originally published 5/1/20

It’s been over a month since Annie Wright transitioned to online school. This new learning format is challenging for many, and people have different opinions about the new Microsoft Teams classes. Many other Tacoma students adapted to new learning formats as well. Inkwell reached out to six students from AWS and neighboring Tacoma schools to see how they are adapting to this change.

Annie Wright Schools Annie Wright Upper School for Girls sophomore Tara Hutchinson appreciates the flexibility of her day due to online classes. “I am able to still get my work done but I can spread out my workday as I please and do other independent projects or activities more easily [as opposed to being at school all day],” she said. Hutchinson said that, although her general workload is the same as before due to AWS’s asynchronous work time, she misses the social interaction that only comes from in-person classes.

Charles Stringfellow, a freshman in the Upper School for Boys, reflected similar experiences with AWS's new learning format. Unlike Hutchinson, he said that he had much less work than he used to, usually around two to three hours a day. “However, that work isn’t divided evenly among my classes,” he noted. “One benefit of virtual school is that I've had lots and lots of time to spend doing what I want to do,” Stringfellow, a dedicated musician, said. "After breakfast I take two and a half hours to practice piano, finishing at around 11 at which point I start my school work… [synchronous classes] finishing up at 5:40. Between 5:40 and 7 I practice organ for a few hours, and after that I’ll do whatever until around 11 when I try to go to bed,” he said of his daily schedule. (Annie Wright Upper Schools have synchronous classes later in the day to accommodate students in different time zones.) Both Stringfellow and Hutchinson agreed that, while the extra free time is a plus, they miss seeing friends and being able to go out on the weekends.

Bellarmine Preparatory School Bellarmine Prep junior Emily Smith noted that online school creates more work overall due to the amount of daily assignments and lack of lectures. “It’s a lot more difficult for most people to self motivate rather than being in a classroom environment, so a lot of the time it feels like a lot more work than it actually is.” she said. Smith observed that despite the amount of school work, one benefit to the new format was the ability to sleep longer and schedule the day to fit your own needs. Smith said she generally wakes up at 9:00 am and has hour long classes until 2:30 in the afternoon. “For most classes we use Zoom for most of the time and then a teacher gives us an assignment to do as class work or homework… I typically do about three hours of homework every day,” she said.

Tacoma School of the Arts Celia Nimura-Parmenter, a freshman at School of the Arts, noted that without teachers and classmates, the workload feels heavier. “I’d say I have more homework than normal just because I procrastinate... I’m learning less but still learning,” she said. Nimura-Parmenter mentioned that she feels very disconnected from her teachers and classmates, especially because many of her classes focus on performance and expression. “I think everyone’s having a hard time right now with anxiety, depression, lack of motivation, and while it’s important to keep learning I think this is something else we as a society should keep in mind,” she added.

Bellarmine student Emily Smith uses the platforms Moodle and Zoom for her remote learning. Photo courtesy of Emily Smith.

Wilson High School Tacoma’s public schools were hit harder by the school closures. Because their students come from a wide range of socioeconomic backgrounds, planning for online school was challenging. Wilson High School sophomore Charles Ganu has one video call every day for his AP Euro class. Ganu mentioned that although his other classes give him review work, the lack of in-person connection means less learning overall. “A disadvantage is it’s not very organized and not helpful in pushing students to learn since our grades aren’t affected at all. Unless you were failing the classes you can’t really improve your grades or lower your grades unless certain teachers go against school policy of not making the work count towards your grade,” he said. Although this policy may seem ideal for students at first, Ganu noted that it contributes to a lack of motivation and engagement because there are no repercussions for not doing the work.

Charles Wright Academy “Our Zoom classes begin at 9:00 am every day and we have classes until 11:45 and we do homework anytime after that and we have office hours for an hour. I wake up at 8 and go to bed pretty late sometimes.” said Lia Kilcup, an 8th grader at Charles Wright. “I feel like it’s nice to be able to have just one speaker on Zoom or be able to talk without any interruptions, but it’s very difficult to sit in front of a screen for 5-7 hours a day and focus properly," she said. "A lot of my peers and I think that the workload has been a little overwhelming… we often tell teachers and advisors about [the stress it adds] and how it feels like more than what we would have had normally.”

Although the new learning formats vary between schools, all these students agreed that online school is nice because there is more flexibility in their daily routines, but that it is more difficult overall than in-person learning because of the lack of student engagement and social interaction.

For "the greater good," churches close during pandemic

article and photo by Parker Briggs, originally published 5/18/20

St. Luke's Memorial Episcopal Church canceled all services in early March.

For many Tacoma residents, places of worship are more than just locations for religious gathering. Places like St. Luke’s Memorial Episcopal Church, built in 1882 by Charles Barstow Wright, provide for the social, spiritual and even economic needs of an entire community of Tacomans. In early March, St. Luke’s canceled both Sunday and Wednesday religious services, in addition to Sunday School meetings, and closed the church preschool and nursery care center.

According to Beth Sherrill, office manager of St. Luke’s, many parishioners “have expressed how much they miss their church community,” and long for “the ability to meet, worship together, and give back to the community.” Church members have been affected in different ways. A baptism was postponed. One family has had to delay placing a loved one’s ashes in the church columbarium.

After installing a wifi router, the church transitioned to worshiping online via Zoom, with one Sunday service and a nightly evening service. However, it has proved to be an imperfect arrangement. Many elderly parishioners do not have internet, or struggle to navigate the technology necessary to attend online worship. Consequently, Sherrill noted, they have felt isolated and cut-off from the community. “The (spiritual) impact cannot be put into words,” she wrote. “The impact of worshiping together and receiving communion cannot be replicated.”

To offer assistance to Tacoma residents feeling the economic impact of the pandemic, St. Luke’s converted its “little library” in front of the church into a “little pantry” containing food items for those in need. The church donated unused paper and plastic tableware to the Tacoma Rescue Mission.

To keep their doors open, churches rely on weekly or monthly financial contributions from their parishioners, many of whom may be affected economically by the COVID-19 pandemic and rendered unable to donate. In addition, more substantial yearly sums pledged by parishioners may be impacted due to a loss in income. Sherrill expressed concern that “the impacts of this will be felt more as the year goes on.”

So far, the closure has affected both the staff and the church building itself. For the preschool teachers, the school closure may have an effect on their pay, especially as the families of students may be unable to pay tuition. Because there is no one on site each day, standard building maintenance has become impracticable. Once, an instance of water

damage remained undiscovered for days, and necessary repair work was delayed.

"We trust in God, but are called to use our reason and intellect."

Marlene Jacobs, Reverend of St. Luke’s, expressed her concerns about the choice of some churches to remain open during the pandemic and hold services, such as to celebrate Easter. “Protecting those who are vulnerable to a severe case of this virus becomes a priority,” she wrote. “Not doing that seems self centered and self serving.”

“Those churches that stay open may say something like ‘we trust in God to protect us,’' she said. "We also trust in God at St Luke's, but we are called to use our reason and intellect, to adhere to the best information and science available, and to be law abiding. It is a significant hardship for us not to hold services in our beautiful sanctuary, and even postpone funerals and weddings. However, it is the greater good to protect our members and all those that they may have contact with. We look forward with longing to the day we can gather again, and we will appreciate this gift more than ever.”