NEW BRAUNFELS, TEXAS – Health care workers at CHRISTUS Santa Rosa Hospital - New Braunfels continue their fight against COVID-19 despite the strain the pandemic has put on the staff.
Dr. Bryan Fisk, medical director of the intensive care unit at the hospital, said the community needs to understand the challenges health care workers face.
“It’s definitely important for everyone to understand what we’re facing right now because it could be them or their loved ones next,” Fisk said.
Some San Antonio hospitals using pediatric ICU for adults due to hospitals reaching capacity
The ICU is quickly filling up, and patients are not recovering fast enough.
Fisk said he has never seen anything like the virus in his years of work.
“We’re doing everything possible that we can, and we’re just not really seeing them turn around as fast, if at all,” Fisk said.
Hospital staff must wear personal protective gear before they enter a patient’s room. Treatments like remdesivir and convalescent plasma are being used to help patients recover.
Fisk says symptoms progress quickly once a patient is admitted into the ICU.
“Unfortunately, once they get into the ICU, a good percentage of those patients end up getting intubated,” he said.
Multiple patients are being intubated daily, and the majority of patients are between 30 and 70 years old.
Despite the strain, the hospital has made some adjustments. Beds from the intermediate care unit were converted to expand the capacity of the intensive care unit.
Fisk said the virus has taken a toll on the staff, who just want to help patients get back to their normal lives.
“As health care providers, that’s our life. We want to get these patients better,” he said.
Nurses from around the country are lending their support to the hospital, and ventilators are still available for patients who need them.
However, Fisk said it’s all hands on deck until things improve.
“We have to be dedicated and focused on this mission right now.”
Military nurse shares experience working in San Antonio ICU with COVID-19 patients