BOSTON (WHDH) - A nurse at Mass General Hospital says dealing with the coronavirus pandemic is frightening, but that she and her co-workers are coming together in the same way they did after the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing.
“Of course there’s a risk of getting the COVID virus, but I think there’s a sense of duty to help,” said Vanessa O’Leary. “This is our job and there’s patients who can’t help themselves right now.”
O’Leary said the hospital has set up additional intensive care units and it’s been difficult for patients with the coronavirus who can’t see loved ones.
“It’s really sad when you see these really sick COVID patients that unfortunately cannot have their family at their bedside,” O’Leary said.
And O’Leary and other workers are working long shifts with only one mask a day.
“We do get one surgical mask a day that we need to reuse. And there are some nurses that are literally at the bedside all day and that’s their mask for the day,” O’Leary said. “And we’re even trying to reuse the mask that we have.”
But she said the teamwork at the hospital has been amazing, and noticeable when she walks into the building for a shift.
“There’s a certain energy at Mass General right now that I’ve never felt. I haven’t felt since April of 2013 after the marathon bombing,” O’Leary said. “So it’s pretty incredible to see.”
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