Calleo had a thoroughly busy day. He spent his first day at Allen Presbyterian Hospital orienting to the ER unit with about eight other nurses. He and another travel nurse were assigned to work with one of the local staff members. He was quite knowledgeable and good at his job. It was not an overwhelming day in terms of sheer volume of patients, but it was busy getting to know the new hospital and its different ways of organization and systems. Here is some of what happened . . .

April 23, 2020: Finally, I made it through the forest of red tape and started working on the unit. Met a lot of travel nurses and got acquainted with the Patient Care Director of the ER (pretty much a nurse manager). I put on some scrubs, grabbed a mask and face shield and went to work!

So Allen Presbyterian Hospital, referred to by locals as “the Allen” has a 25-bed ER. There is a section of about five beds devoted to pediatrics, but that space has pretty much been put in to use for adults with COVID-19. And yes, patient’s are still coming in with COVID-19. I saw at least one positive result for COVID-19, but judging by the amount of coughing and respiratory symptoms I would say that probably 1/4 of the patients in the ER had COVID-19.

Naturally, I got talking to a lot of different nurses and medical staff that had been in the ER during March, which was the most grueling and stressful period for NYC. Apparently, the 25-bed ER had to be jury-rigged to support 100 patients at a time. I’m not sure how long this period endured, but their were dire reports by staff that at times there were only 2-3 nurses on the floor. Understandably, some of those nurses experienced PTSD from that time. The situation then was probably the worst-case scenarios that the news was reporting regarding equipment shortages, mobile morgues, tents, and hysteria.

Still, I can’t believe the resilience of a number of the nurses that lived through it, but my preceptor did tell me it was hard for many nurses and medical staff because doctors and nurses fell victim to the pandemic as well and some did not make it.

There is a new found respect among patients for the medical staff. I had a patient remind me to perform hand hygiene saying “we need you guys, you’re doing a good job.” The hardest hit demographic, I have to say, is the older population and it’s a bit sad at the moment because families have to send their loved ones into the hospital for treatment by ambulance, but no visitors are allowed so if they are admitted they stay without family around them. “the Allen,” which has different med/surg units, has pretty much been converted in to COVID-19 wards taking care of those actively fighting the disease process.

Personal Protective Equipment and supplies are a bit more robust than they were a month ago, but charge nurses are still actively managing critical supplies. Nurses and other workers are able to receive one N-95 per day, which is probably better than what was being issued earlier.

So, that’s it. I got one day of orientation and now I get my assignments. Please see “For my Nurse/Doc/Tech Friends” for a report on EPIC issues and other hospital jargon.

Well, I got two recipes today for Haitian Tea from some nurses aka “The Covid-Fighter.” They gave me the ingredients, but not the ratios/measurements so I’m going to have experiment to find the right taste. Actually, this stuff might be good for mixers. I got two different recipes and here they are:

Haitian Tea 1: Garlic, Ginger, Turmeric, Pimento seed, Thyme, Lemon, Orange Peel

Haitian Tea 2: Ginger, Turmeric, Lime, Lemon, Cloves, Garlic, and (if desired) honey

If I combine these properly they could be good. Otherwise . . .

PS

Oh, Alaska Airlines featured some travel nurses including me!

Going the extra mile for health care workers