ICU nurse: We're all going through some type of post-traumatic stress
ICU nurse Anthea Noel gives an update on how frontline workers are holding up as COVID-19 pandemic drags into May.
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Blood clotting and other additional maladies caused by coronavirus are leading to patient deaths, New Jersey ICU nurse Anthea Noel reported Thursday.
Appearing on "America's Newsroom" with host Ed Henry, Noel said on Wednesday a 19-year-old patient under her care recently died of complications from the virus.
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"The numbers have decreased, but we are still seeing deaths. Yesterday I lost a 19-year-old patient to COVID-19 and that struck a chord with all of us," she emotionally recounted. "You know, every death is significant but when you have just a child, just a baby [at] 19 years old, it hits home."
Although the elderly and immuno-compromised are more at-risk, the virus has proven fatal to the young and seemingly healthy in some cases.
"What happened in general since we've heard so much that someone 19 years old is likely to be in a better position to deal with this?" asked Henry.
"That's what we've heard," Noel replied. "But, sometimes what we are seeing is that patients are developing clots and even though we put them on anticoagulation therapy they throw clots and sometimes they stroke out or get pulmonary [embolism], which can be fatal."
There are now almost 324,000 confirmed COVID-19 cases in the virus's epicenter of New York State with over 25,600 deaths recorded. The United States has surpassed 1.2 million cases -- the most of any country -- with over 73,000 deaths.
"I think all of us are going through some type of post-traumatic stress," Noel told Henry. "You know: the insomnia, the weight loss, being irritable -- I think all of us are dealing with things differently.
"It is our coping mechanisms that get us through," she added. "So, if we have good support systems like our family, our friends, our coworkers to lean on...even counseling...My best friend is a counselor. She's a psychotherapist. So, you know, I kind of bounce things off of her and use her as a sounding board."
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This week is National Nurses Week and Noel advised people could show their gratitude to those battling coronavirus alongside her with "a simple thank you" or an "air hug."
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