Health Care Heroes

Healthcare Heroes Medical professionals give insight on being on the frontlines of the COVID-19 pandemic.

by: MALLORY SWOPE sta writer

The COVID-19 pandemic has become the monster under the bed everyone feared as a child. It has redefined what “normal” looks like now and what it could look like in the future. From elementary-aged children to the elderly, the pandemic has altered the way we go about our lives. We’ve had to distance ourselves from family and friends for months now as we wait for things to return to normal. We’ve also had to endure new experiences no one ever thought we would face. For kids and teenagers, it’s school. Our school days have moved from classrooms filled with friends and peers to our homes where we see everybody as icons or images on the computer. For others, it’s work. Whether or not someone can proceed with their typical routine depends on if their job is deemed “essential.” For these people, the pandemic has gotten up close and personal with their lives. Karl Koehler is an employee in an “essential” position. He has been a nurse for 25 years, 18 of which have been with Munson. Before the pandemic struck Traverse City, Koehler spent his shifts treating a wide range of patients’ needs. “We typically work closely with the cardiac catheterization lab and utilize state-of-the-art technology to manage myocardial infarction and heart disease,” Koehler explained of his day-to-day routine. Koehler has seen his fair share of change within the medical field during his 25 years of experience, from the change to digital records to treatment for hypothermia, but no change has single handedly impacted his practice more than the COVID-19 pandemic. Tim Huschke, Emergency Physician in Cadillac and Grayling hospitals, has endured similar experiences in the last few weeks. He has also found that the COVID-19 pandemic is unlike anything any medical professional has seen before, and he especially saw an immediate need for more testing. “I don’t think we had adequate testing initially and had a poor federal response, which allowed the virus to spread unchecked,” Huschke explained. Both medical professionals have seen just how ruthless the COVID-19 virus is to the patients infected, and to their families who can’t be with their struggling loved one. “Make no mistake; COVID can be lethal,” Koehler warned. Koehler’s initial reactions to the pandemic shifted over the course of a few weeks as the pandemic surged and encroached on Traverse City. “I thought it would be more easily controlled,” he stated. His response to the pandemic also had to change as his role at Munson did. When COVID-19 came to Traverse City, Koehler was taken from his unit and put on the frontlines of the pandemic as a critical care nurse for those infected. “This pandemic has changed all of our work and personal lives [at the hospital],” Koehler said. He has had to put his own safety and health at risk in order to care for COVID-19 patients which has led to many changes at home. “I social distance from neighbors and vulnerable family members, I wear a mask in public. At work we are required to always

wear a mask,” Koehler explained. Huschke also reported changes he’s brought about in his personal life to accommodate his work life. “I stayed in a hotel away from my family for the first two weeks of the pandemic, but now I go home after work and do my best to social distance,” he said. Koehler has seen some good come out of the pandemic, however. Seeing everything that is happening first hand, Koehler sincerely believes the situation is being handled properly and has helped an uncontrolled spread of the virus, especially after seeing how dierent it was from what he expected. He also believes gradually loosening restrictions of social distancing will help the population build up an immunity until a vaccine can be developed and made readily available. While Koehler is still leery of the virus, he has seen medical sta improve how they treat patients and feels encouraged about how much better it will be given some time. Despite his encouragement, Koehler hasn’t always been optimistic about being on the forefront of a pivotal time in society. “I think it is interesting and simultaneously terrifying to experience the pandemic first hand,” he said. Fearing what might happen if the virus spread to him while treating a patient, he has “felt some anxiety at times not knowing how [his] body would react to infection,” whether he would present with symptoms or be an asymptomatic carrier. Huschke has shared this concern, finding it “gratifying to be able to be able to help people who have been

aected by this virus, but stressful to think you could contract a virus that is potentially lethal.” Recently, a change has been noticed by both Koehler and Huschke in the pace of their shifts. Koehler has not treated as many COVID patients, and his home unit on the variable acuity floor has reopened. The reopening of this floor was allowed largely due to the fact that the expected influx of COVID patients in the greater Traverse City area did not occur, remaining in the early twenties for almost a month. As a result Koehler, Huschke, and their coworkers throughout the region are beginning to return to a sense of normal, albeit dierent, as we wait to see what society’s new normal looks like in the weeks ahead. //