New York doctor documents day in fight against COVID-19

A doctor at a New York City hospital shared a video diary in which he gave a glimpse of conditions behind the scenes on the front line in the battle against COVID-19 on April 7.

Dr Erik Blutinger, an emergency medicine physician at Mount Sinai Queens in his first year out of training, begins the diary as he sits in his car before starting his shift, describing his level of anxiety about going into work as every day is “like a jack in the box.”

“Today, I’ve heard from a few colleagues that things are still status quo,” Blutinger says. “I know Governor Cuomo announced we’re potentially getting close to the plateau, or peak, but it’s really hard to see that day-to-day just given the extreme volume and acuity of our patient population.”

Blutinger then begins his shift, giving viewers a glimpse inside an emergency department crowded with patients. While walking through a crowded hallway, Blutinger describes how “everyone is COVID-19 positive in these hallways. All you hear is oxygen.”

He then gives viewers a tour of two “surge” tents set up outside the hospital to cater for patients when the emergency department at full capacity, one of which is in use already.

Blutinger also notes how the hospital plays ‘Here Comes The Sun’ by The Beatles on a loudspeaker when a COVID-19 positive patient is discharged, before demonstrating how to test a patient for the coronavirus.

He concludes the diary noting how COVID-19 “seems to permeate into every aspect of life.”