Fulbright Thailand's
SHARING STORY A COVID-19 FRONTLINE DOCTOR
STEVEN AUNG LIN I put on a gown, gloves, face masks, and a face shield. Under the weight of this equipment and the heat starting to build, I take a deep breath and walk into a dark hospital room. I find Isaac coughing as he struggles to breathe and the high flow machine continuously forcing air into his lungs, his oxygen levels barely above the minimum required for life. He recognizes me only by the sound of my voice, “It’s Dr. Lin again, Isaac, how are you feeling?” He answers in a soft, tired voice. I grasp his shoulder to share with him some form of human touch as he remains isolated from not only his family but all the healthcare workers caring for him, divided by the specter of the COVID-19 virus. I tell him to keep fighting, he nods and lays back down, wearied by his rapid breathing and coughing.
As I finish my second year of internal medicine residency, I sometimes still wake up in disbelief at the current times. My hospital’s ER is slammed with patients. Our ICU beds are full. A few days ago, I could not find any high flow oxygen machines in the entire hospital to use for a patient who was rapidly declining. Everyday, my fellow physicians and healthcare staff work tirelessly and risk our lives, our colleague’s lives, and our family’s lives caring for our COVID patients. The Hippocratic oath continues to guide us; our sense of duty and love for our patients cuts through our fears. I am so proud of my fellow resident physicians in particular who do not think twice about physically examining our COVID patients daily or jumping in to help a decompensating patient.
Steven is a 2010-2011 English Teaching Assistant (ETA) to Sawan Anan Wittaya School in Sukhothai. Lots of thing happened in Thailand during the year including the severe flood which affected all parts of Thailand. Steven turned this tragic moment into a meaningful lesson for his students and the school community. With his guidance, students arranged series of music performance in the market and were able to raise fund for the flood victims. The performance received much support from the locals and promoted the sense of family and caring among all involved. Indeed, Steven’s caring spirit grows through times as we can feel from this story.
The tsunami of COVID-19 rages on and we, physicians, on the frontlines will continue to heal you and the lives of your friends and loved ones everyday no matter if you come to the hospital with COVID-19 pneumonia or another issue. However, we cannot defeat this virus alone. No miraculous medication can eliminate this pandemic. You, in the community, are the key to stopping this virus. We need your help to be responsible and to follow your local guidelines whether it may be to wear masks or physically distance. We continue to prize the value of the individual and freedom in this country, however please exercise your freedom to help those of us taking care of your loved ones and also for your neighbor and your country. ***Any names mentioned in my post have been changed to protect the privacy of our patients