‘Terrified’ KC nurse’s coronavirus post goes viral, blasts those not social distancing
The author of the post, said to be a Kansas City emergency room nurse, does not reveal her name on Facebook because she insists she wants to protect her family and is typically not outspoken.
But her “terrified” words — holding to account people who are failing to practice social distancing in the face of the expanding coronavirus, or COVID-19, pandemic — are being spread far and wide on social media.
She urges people to listen unless they want to play a role in what she calls “dire” results.
“Y’all. I am not a confrontational person at all . . .,” the nurse begins. “But after seeing some of the discussion recently regarding social distancing (or how you are going to blatantly ignore it) really has me straight up terrified. TERRIFIED. Let me tell you why.
“I am an ER nurse. I will be on the front lines, in the trenches battling this thing when it really hits KC. And the general attitude regarding social distancing and how ‘it won’t stop me from living my life’ is making me absolutely terrified at the battle we healthcare providers are gearing up to face.
“Social distancing isn’t because you’re scared of contracting the virus. Social distancing isn’t the media causing a frenzy. Social distancing is our last effort to gain control of this thing before it overwhelms our healthcare system.
“Social distancing is for the benefit of your entire community. Ideally, if everyone would limit themselves to staying home aside from absolutely essential things, the virus would spread at a steady, stable, continuous rate. If social distancing is ignored and the masses continue to unnecessarily contract and spread the virus in groups in public, then we as a community see a very LARGE, rapid spike in sick people. So many sick people in such a short period of time that the hospitals can’t keep up.
“They don’t have the physical space, resources, staff members, ventilators, etc., to be able to effectively care for such a large group of sick people. . . Aside from that, people don’t stop having critical illness such as heart attacks, strokes, sepsis, pulmonary embolisms, respiratory failure, etc., just because there’s a pandemic.
“There ARE NOT enough hospital rooms to house all these sick people, NOT enough ventilators or ICU rooms/nurses to take care of a large influx of intubated patients, NOT enough staff members to be able to care for such a large number of patients presenting for care at once.
“If you’re not scared by the implications that could potentially have on our healthcare system, you should be.
I’ve had years of disaster training and let me tell you, if we don’t contain this thing to a slow spread, the effects will be dire.”
The writer goes on to say that in a disaster, resources must be rationed. Difficult choices must be made.
“If a 65-year-old with health conditions and a 25 year old with no health conditions present with the same critical illness and will both die if they don’t get immediate attention, and we only have enough resources to help one of them, we have to choose who dies.
“Let that sink in. I, as a healthcare provider, along with my teammates of nurses and physicians, have to decide whose LIFE ENDS because we don’t have the resources to care for both. . . This horrifying scene is Italy’s reality right now. And could very easily become our reality if we continue with the ‘I’m not scared, I’m going to continue to live my life’ attitude.
I know it sucks to be shut away in your house with your kids after you’ve been doing it all winter. Believe me. I freakin’ know. We are all moms, we KNOW. But going to public places just for the sake of getting out could have SERIOUS implications. . . .”
“Please. Stay home unless it’s essential. For the sake of your community and the healthcare workers that will already be stretched SO thin to battle this thing under even the best of circumstances. Do it for those vulnerable populations . . .They will pay with their life. . . . It’s going to take all of us, our entire community, to adhere to the recommendations in order to get a handle on this, if we are going to be able to manage it effectively. Don’t let us get to the point of Italy.”
“Thanks mamas. Stay safe, and stay smart.”’
At the end she includes a note to her healthcare colleagues.
“We will get through this together!”
