What to expect at a local hospital

 

Emergency Room sign

My Visit to the ER During a Pandemic


Amorinda Martinez
Midwestern Career College
Associate Director of Career Services and Employer Relations

April 3, 2020


Amorinda Martinez, MCC’s Associate Director of Career Services and Employer Relations, shares her experience with visiting the ER this week.

 

While the timing was less than optimal, yesterday I had the need to visit the emergency room and wound up in a local facility. Not knowing what to expect, I have to be honest I was nervous, and even outright scared of what I would encounter given today’s environment and the images we are all presented with on a daily basis in the media. The experience proved to be intense but gave me the opportunity to put several things into perspective as we face this pandemic and challenges locally, nationally and globally. As someone who works in Career Services and finding healthcare career opportunities for graduates, I was pleased to observe firsthand how steadfast, committed, and passionate our healthcare professionals are. They truly are the heroes on the front line.

I was equally impressed by having the ability to see the measures and steps our healthcare organizations are taking to control the exposure and spread of this virus as they attempt to serve all in need of care. The efforts that have been put in place to ensure the safety of patients, first responders, and healthcare professionals in an effort to minimize cross contamination provided a much-needed sense of relief. I was relieved to see the multiple checkpoints and triage areas one must pass before being allowed entry into the hospital. I observed and it appeared that each department was intentionally working with a reasonable number of patients. In speaking with an employee, they shared with me that there was a required triage for each employee before entering their shift. To an even greater effort, any employees even remotely suspected of COVID-19 exposure or showing minimal signs/symptoms were required to have a chest X-Ray.

During these uncertain times, I thought this was important to share my experience on what is happening at ground zero. Share this with a friend, family member, student or colleague who might be feeling a similar sense of anxiety as I did. I was expecting chaos and fear, but encountered order, safety and readiness. I am hoping that my experience might provide them the level of relief and confidence that I had.

 

#covid19 #healthworkers #healthypeople #healthyworkplaces #healthyemployees #employeewellness #healthmatters #workplacewellness #wellbeing

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