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fromClaudia Kabel
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shut down
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The clinic director of the central emergency room reports on her work during the corona times. Fear is a constant companion.
Dr. Sabine Jobmann, Clinic Director of the Central Emergency Department:
“Somehow I’m always tired. The last year was very exhausting: the first ‘Corona wave’, a short summer break, then the second wave, and at the same time we and the department moved. The new premises are very beautiful – the joy about them is drowned out in the second wave. Pity! My last vacation was in July. The autumn vacation was postponed, but it didn’t work in December either. So the vacation is taken into the new year. The lack of rest days is slowly becoming noticeable, and that is the case with many of my colleagues. The question of when these vacation days can be taken is justified.
Even before entering the clinic, I think about whether the team is complete today. Is anyone sick? If so, is he ‘normally’ ill or is he suspected of having a corona infection, or has it even been proven? If so, who was in contact with whom and when? Who needs to be informed and deleted? Where does something have to be reported again? Who has to be in quarantine for how long? We take care of the sick colleagues. Some had mild symptoms and they are more worried about colleagues at work who now have to work more while you are at home with mild symptoms. But there were also some who had clear symptoms of the disease, and we were happy when they were better. Nobody wants to have to deal with their own colleagues! Many have children. Again and again a problem. Has childcare been on? Are the opening times shorter? School yes or no? Is a supervisor missing? We always have to react to this at very short notice, and it has to work somehow.
And then there’s the fear: What if I get infected and then infect someone close to me? Not a nice thought! Regardless of all of these things, the emergency room continues every day. We have opened a locked area for patients with corona symptoms. Now we have two emergency rooms next to each other. Only protective clothing may be used in the insulation area. If you do this over a longer period of time, you save yourself a visit to the sauna. And the break is canceled for the time being because a seriously injured patient has been announced. This is going on. The other emergency patients continue to come despite Corona, and we want to take good care of them all.
When there is a lot going on, the emergency services sometimes stand in a queue with their patients. There is no alternative – the surrounding hospitals are also full. It’s nerve-wracking for everyone and we have to be careful to continue to get on well with each other. “
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