“This pandemic exceeds every human capacity”, says Argentinian nurse
BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA — Watching or reading the news about Covid-19 is still nerve-wracking.
The numbers of deaths and contagions rise fast day, there are new outbreaks, there is still a long wait for a vaccine, and there is still so little the world knows about the virus. And all people can do is wait.
On the other hand, health care workers might appear invincible ‒they are the ones who fight day and night against the disease. But people should always remember that they are just as vulnerable as the rest of the population.
Take care of those who take care of others
Amidst the pandemic, the Argentinian Health Ministry has published several guides on its website referred to health care workers and mental health workers and self-care tips. There are also programs developed in some hospitals, with a goal of workers maintaining mental stability.
“Just five days after the quarantine was decreed, we organized the program to assist health care workers called Take care of those who take care of others [Cuidar a los que cuidan in Spanish]”, said the psychologist and coordinator of the program, Guadalupe Amor, via Zoom.
This project aims to evaluate and treat health care workers in Tres de Febrero municipality of Buenos Aires.
“Around 300 people have been treated in before, during and after evaluations”, explained Amor.
“At the first stage, we made group evaluations to provide tools to face the pandemic”, as well as individual evaluations to determine which person was suitable for each task, given that “some staff members are more exposed to stressful situations than others. Those who were not emotionally capable of executing some tasks had to be reassigned to activities that they were able to do”. Today, every therapy session is handled via Zoom due to the well-known restrictions.
According to the psychologist, in some cases a preexisting stress or anxiety problem was intensified by the kind of environment to which health workers were exposed, leading to a breakdown in extreme situations, although all of these issues were treatable.
“Our program is focused on making them understand that they are not heroes, they have to rely on their colleagues”
Emotional trigger
Every historic event or tragedy triggers many emotions in all of the people involved and now the Covid-19 pandemic has become perhaps the most widespread emotionally challenging event of the century.
Primary care workers are in direct contact with infected patients or possible Covid-19 cases, therefore are at a higher risk of developing emotional issues.
One of the common traits of a health worker is “their need of solving everything by themselves”, said Amor. “[But] they must do team work. Our program is focused on making them understand that they are not heroes, they have to rely on their colleagues” and be careful all the time.
Even though “many of them were eager” to start helping, remembers the psychologist, “there was a lot of fear of the unknown”, mostly because of the chaos in Europe. She also observed fatigue, angst and grievance, “because nobody can foresee what will happen in the future”.
What worries Amor the most are the cases where care workers have diminished the sense of risk after all the months the pandemic has lasted. “Sense of fear is healthier because people are more careful” explained. Being aware of the danger is necessary to avoid getting infected.
Coping strategies
Despite her work experience, the nurse Melisa Espinoza did not feel entirely prepared to face Covid-19.
“This pandemic exceeds every human capacity”, she said via Zoom. She has 10 to 17 hour night shifts, goes home, sleeps four hours and returns to the private hospital in the city of Buenos Aires where she has worked for five years. It is also where one of the first cases was diagnosed.
Espinoza had started a one-week vacation leave when this interview took place. She couldn’t take the 15 regulatory days given the “complicated situation” in the hospital and they need her, said. “There are infected colleagues in isolation”, but she was given the opportunity to rest.
She sometimes feels physically and mentally exhausted, but she makes the effort to block a rush of emotions. “We are constantly in contact with death; I try to be a little bit cold and distant in this case to avoid suffering”.
To cope with stress or fatigue, she prays.
“I cast my burdens on the Lord and accept that I am only a human”, she said. “Only God can do the rest”. Cooking and cleaning are another good option when she is not exhausted. Chatting with her friends can cheer her up.
Nurse Espinoza works in a general area where lower-risk patients are assisted. She likes to talk to all of her patients, although none of them can recognize her with the protective clothes and equipment. She tries to make them feel less lonely through really small talks since staying around for too long is forbidden. “Communicating through the phone is not the same as chatting face to face”, she said.
“Empathy is very important for this kind of job; you never know if you could become a patient one day; I have seen it.”
“You can have money, family, everything, but without health, without something free such as oxygen, you are just like another human being.”
She pointed out the unforgettable lesson she learned: “You can have money, family, everything, but without health, without something free such as oxygen, you are just like another human being. Being in a private hospital or the quality of the ventilator doesn’t matter if your body doesn’t respond to treatment”.
Endangered essentials
In a bulletin published on The Healthcare Professionals of Argentina Union (FESPROSA) website on August 19, it was revealed that 20,000 health care workers have gotten infected nationwide and 65 have died. They called for a protest on August 20 to raise awareness among the government regarding their situation.
On the same day that bulletin came out, a doctor from Jujuy, an Argentinian province, posted a video crying for help and claiming “there are no beds, no oxygen and we are frightened because nobody says anything”. She was alone with nine patients as her colleagues “are all infected”, she said.
According to a Health Researchers Network report published the first week of August, the health system in Argentina has almost collapsed. Infected patients have outnumbered health care workers and ICU beds are pretty close to reach its full capacity.
