Emergency Room Trauma Doctors (Sabrina Bahu)
Fact-Checked Source: CBS Chicago, "Chicago ER Doctor And The Battle Against COVID-19: ‘Stay Home. This Is The Real Deal’"
On April 1st, 2020, CBS Chicago correspondent David Begnaud spoke to Doctor Scott Salman about the chaos in Emergency rooms all around the country during this COVID-19 pandemic.Here is a video from CBS Chicago...
Full CBS Chicago video
Looking Deeper: Five Facts Checked
Because not all information published is necessarily true, I've done research to verify five facts shown in the CBS article
Begnaud: We keep hearing that young people are not as affected as this. Is that your experience?
Samlan: You can tell that to the 27-year-old I intubated last week who had no medical problems.
This fact matters because many people around the ages of 13-30, are thinking they are asymptomatic. This is a problem because not evereyone reacts to the virus the same way. When people think they are healthy but are positive with COVID-19, they might not be aware of the germs they are spreading. Young people could be affected and this fact is true according to the CDC frequently answered questions website.
Suspected covid patients must be isolated
This statement is a very big and important aspect of the Coronavirus. Patients suspected of being infected along with those who do carry this virus are highly contagious and therefore must be isolated. This fact was found on this CBS chicago interview and proved by the CDC what to do if you are sick section.
There was the CDC that said we could use bandanas as a form of protection for yourself
I felt like this fact needed to be uprooted and checked out because there is shortage of masks all throughout the world. People are
struggling to find alternate ways to proteect themselves from contracting the virus and Doctor Scott Salman said that the CDC confirmed the use of bandanas for protection. Therefore I checked out the CDC website for proof and found that bandanas and scarves may be used for pare of patients with COVID-19 are a last resort. This information was found on the CDC website section titled "Strategies for Optimizing the Supply of Facemasks".
Begnaud: How many patients do you see on a daily, patients who are suspected of being COVID-19 positive?
Samlan: Over 60% to 70% every day.
This is a fact that could vary depending on the state and its contact with Coronavirus. Doctor Salman works in Mount Sinai Hospital in Chicago, therefore I looked up the infection rate In Chicago is 1 in 100 people have tested positive, along with 41,777 confirmed cases, therefore Dr. Salman was telling the truth according to these facts found on the New York Times.
If their white count is normal, and their x-ray looks like COVID-19, and their influenza negative, it’s COVID-19
COVID-19 is a very intriquite kind of virus. It is sneaky and latches onto cell receptors in your body, causing it to be hard to latch off and get rid of the virus. Along with those difficulties, a flu or cold like symptons could easily be thought to be coronavirus. This is hard for the doctors because they dont have unlimited tests and only need to test patients who they highly think have the virus. Tests are performed before the thought of using a COVID-19 test, which includes checking their white cell count, doing a panel of other illnesses, and taking an x-ray of the lungs. These are stated and proven on the website verywellhealth which breaks down the steps on how COVID-19 could be diagnosed.
Analytic Essay
Frightening Times: Emergency Room Trauma Doctors Perspectives on COVID-19
COVID-19 is a flu-like illness that has taken over the normalities of the world. Patients are overflowing hospitals and some are sadly dying. Emergency room doctors are on the front line of this frightening and unpredictable pandemic, and I have decided to represent their point of view on the matter. The article presented at the beginning of this webpage comes from CBS Chicago, a reliable source that is showing the perspective of Doctor Scott Samlan who is an ER doctor at Mount Sinai Hospital on Chicago’s west side. His viewpoint is very important because he speaks for other Emergency trauma doctors who are experiencing extremely similar situations. He says that he has seen nothing like this, and that gun wounds don't even scare him as much as this, cases that trauma doctors see pretty often. Emergency room doctors are interested in the COVID-19 pandemic because their highest interest and value is to help others and bring them back to health.The article on CBS Chicago contains a video, and if the listener pays attention, one can hear the trembling and shaking voice of Doctor Samlan. The coronavirus pandemic clearly matters to this doctor and doctors in general because they are the ones mostly dealing with the sick patients. Every new update and discovery matters to the doctors because they need to be in the know and always up to date on what's happening to properly treat the patients in their care. Trauma doctors have definitely lost protection from COVID-19 compared to those quarantined at home. They are being constantly exposed to the virus which results in them potentially being infected. But as Doctor Samlan stated, “It’s not our job, it’s our duty. This is what we signed up for” (CBS Chicago, 2020). These doctors know that they are important in determining at least some of the outcome of the virus, because if they did not care and refused to treat the patients, no one would and there would be an extreme increase in deaths compared to the casualties there are currently. The doctors value health, care, treatment, and prosperity. They want the best for their patients and it is their goal to do everything morally right to help them. As Doctor Mollette stated in an interview, “Doctors are remaining strong because they have a job to do, and an oath they need to fulfil” (Today Show, 2020).
There are many important aspects to the virus that doctors need to be aware of. They look at facts that could persuade their future decisions of medical care. These include the numbers of people infected, the symptoms presented that signify COVID-19, the patients health history so they could determine the proper medical route, the amount of resources present, and definitely more. Cedric Dark, an emergency room physician at the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, stated, “across the country hospitals are trying to figure out ways to use one ventilator machine for more than one patient. There are very few ventilators to go around” (Matt Simon, 2020). Resources are low, which effects the route doctors would usually take to treat them.
During this pandemic, Doctors are stressed and patients are scared, and hope is a very important feeling to hold on to. Throughout this pandemic, one may ask why. Not only why is this pandemic happening but with it changing humans day to day lives, why do people choose emergency and urgent care services. This answer is simple, there could be “limited access to or confidence in primary care; patient perceived urgency; convenience; views of family, friends, or other health professionals; and a belief that their condition required the resources and facilities offered by a particular healthcare provider” (Coster, J, 2017).
Emergency rooms are prepared for as soon as possible care emergencies. But the Emergency rooms aren't what heals the patients in need of care, it's the doctors. Normally, there has been an increasing need for emergency care, due to many factors including “people with primary care problems who use emergency and urgent care services to access care”, and more (Coster, J, 2017). Now with COVID-19, the emergency room is vital and packed with more than the original increasing number of patients.
Because trauma doctors are the ones fully equipped with tools and medicine needed to help people, they have to make a lot of decisions that are based on trust. They trust the information and techniques they've learned in medical school, they trust the x-ray, CAT scan, and MRI scan readings. One thing vital with COVID-19, is if the doctors trust themselves. Some hospitals have an overflow of patients, and need to decide which should stay and which should leave. This is a hard decision and needs to be made based on the patient's health.
Emergency room doctors are included in the COVID-19 pandemic because it is their duty and passion to help others and bring them back to health. I believe this perspective is very important to include in the website because these doctors are the ones on the front line. They are the people seeing everything with their own eyes, working non stop, trying to protect themselves while helping others, being there for the families who have lost someone to COVID-19, guiding other doctors with decisions and making some hard decisions for their own patients. Without these doctors, this pandemic would be unpredictable and frightening, the world is thankful for the hard work and dedication of these workers.
References
Stephanie Gosk, Rob George. (2020 March 31). Today show, ER doctor reveals what it’s like on front lines of coronavirus battle in New York. Today Show, New York https://www.today.com/video/er-doctor-reveals-what-it-s-like-on-front-lines-of-coronavirus-battle-in-new-york-81423941895
This source is a youtube video interview with an ER doctor first hand, talking about the NYC hospitals current situation. It comes from the "Today" News source. I can tell what perspective is being shown because Doctor Arabia Mollette is talking about the struggles and duties that they have to help the people of New York. The main argument is that medical "war zone", as Dr. Arabia said, that doctors were unprepared for, but they are remaining strong because it is what they need to do. They are low in supplies, such as protective gear, even doctors who are falling ill. Doctors are in high risk to exposure. The doctors are seeing first hand disparity and all the illnesses up front. I think it will provide good evidence because it is a doctor talking first hand about the struggles and information of the current pandemic.CBS. (2020, April 1). Chicago ER Doctor And The Battle Against COVID-19: 'Stay Home. This Is The Real Deal'. Retrieved from https://chicago.cbslocal.com/2020/04/01/chicago-er-doctor-covid-19/
This source is an additional source interview of an Er doctor speaking about the cover 19 pandemic. It came from the CBS Chicago website. I can tell the perspective of this source because whatever the doctor is saying, is in quotes. The reader can see that this information is coming straight from the doctors perspctive who is describing what he has seen regarding everything going on. The main argument is that the doctor has never seen anything like this and a majority of the patients that have entered the ER, 60-70% are positive with COVID 19. Young people are being affected although the media says they aren't. People that are entering the ER with any respiratory problems are being treated as if they have COVID, even without being tested just in case. The doctor says that If their white count is normal, and their x-ray looks like COVID-19, and their influenza negative, it’s COVID-19. I think this source will provide good evidence of my perspective I chose because we are hearing exactly what is going on first hand from the doctor in the hospital himself. Visuals are also important and I hope I can include visuals in the website page.Simon, M. (2020, March 27). An ER Doctor Describes What It's Like to Treat Covid-19. Wired. Retrieved from https://www.wired.com/story/covid-19-emergency-rooms/
This is an additional source of an ER doctor speaking as to how it is to treat COVID-19 patients. It came from "Wired", a news website. I can tell what perspective is being showed by how the doctor is speaking. He is talking In first person, therefore I know no one has switched his words up and what he is saying. The main argument of this source is how the doctor is saying how the Er doctors and nurses are the people who can continue to heal and help stop the growth of this pandemic. The doctor is saying the differences between mild and severe cases of COVID and how if its mild they will be put on oxygen, but severe will be put on a ventilator. Because so many people need ventilators they have been trying to connect up to 8 people on the same ventilator. The doctor is also stating that they are not prepared to decide the ethical decision between who lives and who dies. I think this source will provide good evidence because it includes crucial information as to how this pandemic is being handled and the steps they are taking to slow it down.Coster, J. E., Turner, J. K., Bradbury, D., & Cantrell, A. (2017). Why Do People Choose Emergency and Urgent Care Services? A Rapid Review Utilizing a Systematic Literature Search and Narrative Synthesis. Academic Emergency Medicine, 24(9), 1137–1149. doi: 10.1111/acem.13220 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/acem.13220
The scholarly expertise of the author of this source, includes that there are many authors who have contributed to this article. Since there are more authors, that creates more of a safezone around the data they are including. More authors means more information having to be looked over and checked which strenghthens the trust of the information in the article. There are analysis's that are provided in the information, including a look at the aging population, the rising number of people with multiple chronic conditions, and behavioral changes relating to how people choose to access health services. Medline, EMBASE, The Cochrane Library, Web of Science, and the Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature were all used in finding information to back up the thesis of this article. The thesis of the source is " The aim of this systematic mapping review was to bring together published research from urgent and emergency care settings to identify drivers that underpin patient decisions to access urgent and emergency care". The key ideas and evidence of this article technically explain why patients choose to access emergency and urgent care services. The article came to the conclusion that this is due to the limited access to or confidence in primary care; patient perceived urgency; convenience; views of family, friends, or other health professionals; and a belief that their condition required the resources and facilities offered by a particular healthcare provider. I think this is important in showing additional insight into my perspective because clearly Emergency room doctors are very crucial during this time along with the immense increase of patients that have been in and out of the emergency room in the hospitlal. This article explains why people choose the ER and why it is so important for the ER to provide for their patients.