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PAGE 63FEATURED STORY3ARROW3MARCH 2020, 2020
Community reacts to t HALEY GROOMS
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
In the time of social distancing and uncertainty, people are trying to make sense of the and people are losing their lives over a virus that is changing the world. On Mar. 23, Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer signed an executive order whic the best of their ability. Necessary workers such as health care providers, first responders in operation under the order. This follows after Whitmer declared a state of emergenc confirmed in Michigan. A SHIFT AT THE HOSPITAL Tara Moore-Lehman, an ER Technician at Ascension St. John Hospital in Detroit, w ployees who screened potential COVID-19 patients. She prepares for long shifts in a environment while having to be extra careful in every precaution against COVID-19. “My shift in the beginning of all this was chaos, We lost a lot of people the first week th shut down schools. And we were still trying to figure out our policies and guidelines and but at the same time, we had to help these people who were dying as well and we had t Work was stressful, tense and very anxious for all staff working in the ER. Guidelines a were changing every other hour every day,” Moore-Lehman said. “It was like having a con tal check off list before going into a patient’s room or even having a patient walk into the we could walk into a patient’s room without worrying if we were going to contract som spread [the virus]. The ER usually has a high anxiety level as it is, but this is a whole diffe anxiety and fear because we could easily have been exposed or had it and could pass it o members and friends which as a healthcare employee, we never want. Besides the work environment changing, her daily uniforms have evolved into layers o gear, as well. “My daily uniform now consists of wearing scrubs, shoes that can easily wipe away fluids [Danskos are what I wear], a regular surgical ear loop mask, a N95 mask, and on t wear a homemade mask to protect my surgical mask and N95, a surgical cap, and now with buttons to save my ears from all the strings that rub on my ears. Along with that I shield and if I don’t have that then I wear my safety goggles.” Moore-Lehman said, “If I d COVID-19 room or if there is suspicion of someone having COVID-19, I do HAVE to we call a CAPR, which stands for Controlled Air Purifying Respirator due to my face not ac fit for an N95. I don’t wear the CAPR for every shift unless I’m working in the COVID department or if I have a COVID-19 positive patient to take care of due to there only bein for the whole ER department. This is why I wear a bunch of masks when I can’t get a CA wear a surgical gown and I also double layer my gloves.” Hospitals around the country are also reporting shortages of necessary supplies like m tors in each hospital for patients to use. “We are running out of things but they are being replaced fairly quickly. It’s not like o we still have all the essentials we need right now,” Moore-Lehman said. “I am able to ge one. The only thing we’re running low on is the CAPR shields.” Amid stressful shifts and long hours spent in masks, many hospitals are doing their b
As of Mar. 20, 2020 there are...
32,003 Confirmed case 1,346 Deaths globally
