The wife of a physician treating coronavirus patients has opened up about how their lives have been changed by the pandemic. Rachel Patzer, a resident of Atlanta, USA, took to Twitter to share how the COVID-19 outbreak has affected their family, and her moving account is going viral on the microblogging platform.
"My spouse is a physician in the emergency dept, and is actively treating #coronavirus patients," she wrote at the beginning of her now-viral Twitter thread, adding that the couple made the difficult decision to isolate him while he continues to treat coronavirus patients.
"We just made the difficult decision for him to isolate & move into our garage apartment for the foreseeable future as he continues to treat patients," wrote Ms Patzer, an epidemiologist and health services researcher at Emory University.
My spouse is a physician in the emergency dept, and is actively treating #coronavirus patients. We just made the difficult decision for him to isolate & move into our garage apartment for the foreseeable future as he continues to treat patients. (1/5)
— Rachel Patzer, PhD (@RachelPatzerPhD) March 17, 2020
In her tweets, she explained that they have three children, including a three-week-old newborn, and did not want to take the risk of exposing them to the highly contagious virus.
The coronavirus, since it was detected in China last year, has spread quickly through most countries. It has infected more than 167,000 people worldwide.
"It pains me to wonder how many weeks will go by that he won't get to hold our new baby or see our older kids," wrote Ms Patzer. "This is one example of the sacrifice that healthcare workers are making for our communities."
She concluded her thread by asking people to take the pandemic seriously and to thank a healthcare worker for the sacrifices they are making.
Please, take this #pandemic seriously. I hope the projections of infections and serious cases are incorrect. If not, our healthcare system will be overloaded. And already we are seeing the strain. Please thank a healthcare worker for what they are doing and sacrificing. (5/5)
— Rachel Patzer, PhD (@RachelPatzerPhD) March 17, 2020
Ms Patzer's post has gone massively viral on Twitter, with her five tweet collecting more than 5 lakh 'likes' together.
In the comments section, hundreds have thanked her husband, while others have shared accounts of their own struggles in the times of COVID-19.
My husband is on service treating pts w/ #COVID19 too. Here's where he's sleeping for the next month. Important for people to recognize how much healthcare workers are pouring their hearts into caring for pts & trying to keep their families safe. pic.twitter.com/91OFdHVuXu
— Tatiana Prowell, MD (@tmprowell) March 17, 2020
https://twitter.com/Amy_Siskind/status/1239893204293636096
Healthcare workers are heroes. So are their families. Thank you for your sacrifice! We appreciate your compassion and courage.
— Practice Social Distancing (@MrJobProper) March 17, 2020
A few days ago, a picture of a worn-out nurse slumped over her keyboard had gone viral online, bringing attention to the extreme fatigue that Italian healthcare workers are facing as they battle Europe's worst outbreak of the novel coronavirus pandemic.
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