We are publishing the letter of a chief internist in the name of love, solidarity, and civil courage!
The "iconic words" in the title remind me of the current situation in our country.
The number of new cases is increasing explosively. We knew based on the forecasts that there would be a fourth wave, and we saw the dramatic situation in the surrounding countries.
Here, too, many patients were suddenly admitted to the hospital, and there is still no news of haste, carelessness, or ventilated patients sent across the border, because the healthcare system is functioning and its employees are once again performing beyond their capacity.
How?
On the Friday before All Saints, our hospital's internal medicine set up a complete department suitable for COVID care in half a day. With hard work. We regrouped patients to other wards, making sure to provide adequate care everywhere. This means patient handover and immediate final report writing. A huge workload for both nurses and doctors in both the receiving and delivery departments. Our colleague who was on vacation suddenly appeared during work. He came without a call, heard that help was needed, and started working without a word.
The number of staff on duty had to be doubled, since now, in addition to the inpatients, incoming infectious patients must be cared for, which cannot be done by the same person. Without a word, nurses and doctors sacrificed their free weekend.
Workers arrived and in a few hours they created a partition wall, ensuring the possibility of sluicing. The protective equipment has reappeared, again there is no shortage of anything. And since then, we have been working with redoubled efforts to provide other internal medicine care in addition to patients suffering from COVID.
We do this for you. However, please help us!
The writer of these lines already took a stand in favor of vaccination in his article published on April 21 of this year under the title "Register for survival". Then Lord Kitchener's election poster encouraged partial vaccination. But how different the Hungarian mentality is. In our country, instead of a soldier with a piercing gaze, a smiling doctor is now pointing at us, asking those who have not done so to get vaccinated.
Of course, there are also vaccinated among the patients, but we see that they catch the disease in a much milder form.
It's still not too late. If you receive the first vaccine tomorrow, you will be partially protected shortly, and significantly protected after the second vaccination. In the meantime, wear a mask and go away, get vaccinated so that we can celebrate Christmas together with our family."
Source: Dr. György Temesszentandrasi/The author is a chief internal medicine physician, currently (again) head of the COVID department
Image: MTI/Zoltán Balogh
