Inside the field hospital treating Covid-19 patients in Nghe An

Sweat pool in positive area

Just stepping out of the positive area, nurse Nguyen Thi Huong Xuan (30 years old) had to quickly take off the heavy protective suit she was wearing. After 3 hours of serving patients, wearing the hot protective suit, Xuan's entire inner clothes were soaked with sweat. Her face bore the marks of the mask.

Protective suit before entering the positive area. Photo: TH

“I’m used to it now. At first, I had to take it off after wearing it for half an hour because it was hard to breathe,” Xuan said. Xuan is one of 32 medical staff working at Field Hospital No. 4. This hospital was requisitioned from a large hotel, facing the beach of Cua Lo town, and is one of 7 locations assigned to receive and treat Covid-19 patients. The hospital has been in operation for nearly 3 weeks, but has treated more than 300 patients.

Her husband is a police officer and has been assigned to work at a checkpoint for over a month now, while her wife has been working at a field hospital. Xuan's two young children have had to rely on their grandparents. Xuan said that, with 10 years of experience in the profession, she has never had to go through such a difficult day as she is now.

Medical staff here have to take on many different jobs, as outsiders cannot enter. Photo: TH

Working in the field hospital, medical staff must wear white protective clothing, masks, anti-droplet goggles, and gloves to minimize the risk of virus infection. After only 15 minutes of being on duty, sweat begins to pour out, making them wet. “The most difficult thing is the inconvenience of having to wear this outfit. After wearing it for a few minutes, my breath fogs up the glasses, and sometimes I can’t even find a vein to inject the patient,” Xuan said.

Clothes soaked after taking off protective clothing. Photo: TH

In addition to the protective gear that makes the work process difficult, this hospital originally requisitioned from the hotel, which is also very inconvenient, not to mention many unfamiliar equipment, and having to search for needed items, so some medical staff feel like they are learning the job all over again. "If we didn't have to wear protective gear, everything would be much easier. But this is treating patients at high risk of infection, so all procedures must be strictly followed," said Ms. Xuan, adding that the environment for treating Covid-19 patients does not have air conditioning, causing many doctors and nurses to quickly lose strength.

Examining a patient. Photo: TH

According to Dr. Nguyen Thanh Hai - Director of Field Hospital No. 4, the unit is assigned to admit and treat mild patients. However, many patients progress very quickly, even when they are admitted to the hospital without symptoms, but soon after they have to be put on a ventilator. Therefore, the medical team here must closely monitor and regularly examine the patients.

Every time they enter a positive area, the medical team must wear protective gear. Each gear costs hundreds of thousands of dong and can only be used once, so to save money, the medical team often connects via phone, examines via video calls...

A briefing inside the field hospital. Photo: TH

Field bookcase

In addition to caring for and treating the symptoms of the disease, Dr. Hai also thinks of many ways to encourage the patients' spirits, considering it a form of psychological therapy during the treatment period. Accordingly, the hospital often uses internal loudspeakers to play happy, uplifting music, songs about victory over the pandemic, to help patients have better spirits. "Many people come here, reading the newspaper and seeing the high death rate in the southern provinces, are also scared. Therefore, I have to constantly encourage them, because spirit is also very important," Dr. Hai said.

One of the bookcases inside the positive area. Photo: TH

In addition, the Director of the Field Hospital also directly called on friends to support the construction of a “Field Bookshelf”. After the call, more than 200 books were brought to serve the patients.

“The hospital has a characteristic that there are many children, school-age patients; at one point there were nearly 90 of them. Being isolated and treated inside, the children have very few options for entertainment. Some children just hug their phones all day. That's why I came up with the idea of ​​making a bookshelf. There are many types of books here, for both adults and children. It's not only entertainment, but also helps them gain more knowledge after days of fighting the pandemic,” said Dr. Nguyen Thanh Hai, adding that the bookshelf is placed right inside the positive area, all those who come to get books to read are F0, so there is no worry that this will be a point of disease transmission. Not to mention, this area is also regularly sprayed with disinfectant.

At one point, nearly 90 patients at this field hospital were children. Photo: TH

Family of 7's fight against Covid-19

Also at Field Hospital No. 4, there was a case where all 7 members of a family were infected with Covid-19. That was the family of Mr. NHT (born in 1982) and his wife, Ms. TTL (born in 1989), residing in Phan Dinh Phung hamlet, Hoa Thanh commune, Yen Thanh district, Nghe An province.

Mr. T. said that the couple got married in 2010 and then had two twins, NTHTh. and NTHT (born in 2010, this year in 6th grade), then after 7 years had a third child, in 2019, the youngest son. The family also has an 86-year-old father, Mr. NHN. On the evening of August 20, in Yen Thanh district, there were 2 positive cases of Covid-19 related to the Viet - Nhat Garment Company.

Monitoring patients via camera. Photo: TH

As a worker here, Mr. T.'s wife was also tested and quarantined according to regulations. Ms. L. was later confirmed positive for Covid-19 and was taken for treatment here, along with her youngest son born in 2019.

“After my wife and children went for treatment, my whole family was F1 so we were taken to a centralized quarantine area at Hoa Thanh Primary School (Yen Thanh). Here, I took care of my children and my father. However, it did not stop there. During the quarantine period, my twin children and my father were confirmed positive for Covid-19, so we were taken here again,” said Mr. T., adding that a few days later, he and his daughter finally tested positive. Therefore, the father and daughter were also taken from the centralized quarantine area in Yen Thanh district to Field Hospital No. 4 for treatment. Here, the family of 7 officially met in a more heartbreaking situation than ever.

Distributing donated items from benefactors to patients. Photo: TH

“My father is old and weak, has many underlying diseases, and his back is hunched, so he can't walk steadily. The whole family always has someone by his side to take care of him. Although the doctors and nurses here are very attentive and actively treat him, I'm still very worried. I hope the whole family can get through this disaster,” said Mr. T.

Sympathizing with the difficult circumstances of Mr. T.'s family, some benefactors bought milk, cakes, candies and some essential items to send to the whole family to use during the treatment process. This is the motivation that helps Mr. T.'s family have more determination to overcome the epidemic.

Medical staff cut each other's hair. Photo: TH

Not only focusing on treating patients, medical staff also regularly visit patients' families. They often call on sponsors to support milk and candy for patients. "The good news is that so far, after nearly 3 weeks of operation, nearly 100 patients have recovered and been discharged from the hospital. The most touching thing is that many patients, after finishing treatment and returning home, still regularly keep in touch with the medical team, doctors, and often send messages of thanks. Those thank you messages are the motivation for us to overcome this difficult period," said Dr. Nguyen Thanh Hai.