The emergency medicine doctor (resident doctor) confirmed in Sheikh Khalifa Medical City, Dr. Mohamed Ibrahim Al-Hayas, that the doctors are fighting a decisive battle against a fierce enemy, and it is not their battle alone, but the battle of everyone, which requires serious commitment to the instructions of the official authorities in the state, and avoiding gatherings Or any causes of infection from the emerging coronavirus (Covid-19), and adherence to the stated procedures to prevent its further spread.
He said: “I work more than 10 hours a day, and the nature of my work in emergencies is changing according to the current situation. At the beginning of the appearance of (Corona), the cases that come to emergencies were suspicious cases, and most of them are simple, and the cases coming from abroad were considered to be very dangerous, but now, All cases, even regular flu cases, are treated as (Covid 19) until proven otherwise. ”
Al Hayas added: «There are several scenarios to deal with cases of suspected (Corona) that we receive and have not yet been examined, where the patient comes and has symptoms of heat, congestion, flu symptoms, or shortness of breath, and as soon as the case reaches the emergency department in Sheikh Khalifa City Medical, it is dealt with in the initial screening, to determine the severity of the case, where the initial screening is performed by a doctor with the nursing staff », indicating that the screening determines the status of the case, whether simple, medium or critical.
He continued: «Critical cases are dealt with immediately, and transferred to the area of critical situations in the emergency, to conduct the necessary case by the existing doctor and nursing staff, while the average cases are subject to some tests, anointing, chest radiography, and ECG, and in case of suspicion that there is a risk to the situation Or expect it to deteriorate, she will be held in the hospital, and if the examination results are reassuring, she is allowed to go home, and adhere to the conditions of the home quarantine until the results of the survey appear.
Al-Hayas explained that simple cases are classified as a swab from the patient, a history, and a clinical examination, and then he goes to the home quarantine, after seeing all the conditions and obligations of the quarantine, the danger of not adhering to it, and the legal accountability that he can expose to himself in the event of non-compliance.
He pointed out that some cases do not suffer any symptoms, and they come only for early detection, and these are transferred to a private clinic covered by the emergency department, and the smears are taken from them and they return to their homes, and they remain in quarantine pending the results, pointing out that the results take between 24 to 48 Hours, depending on the laboratory and the number of samples.
Al Hayas added: “The second step in dealing with patients begins after the result of the swab. Positive cases that prove that they are infected are dealt with again by the emergency department in Sheikh Khalifa Medical City, and these cases do not belong only to those who were taken from the hospital in the hospital, But for other patients, their smears are taken in private hospitals and examination centers from the car, where they receive a text message if the result is positive, and coordination is done with Abu Dhabi Police and the Abu Dhabi Health Department, to transfer the case to the hospital.
He pointed out that there is a difference between the patients in their acceptance of the reality of the emergence of the new coronavirus, and the effect of this on their morale, so the role of doctors and nurses does not depend on the medical side only, but extends to the human and psychological side, where they support the patient and explain the disease and the treatment protocol, and raise its morale until Its immunity improves.
On the repercussions of the “Corona” crisis on doctors, Al Hayas stressed that feeling anxious among doctors is out of the question, especially since this pandemic is new to medical personnel in the whole world, which puts all medical personnel today under pressure resulting from their assumption of the responsibility of saving humanity, from A new virus, limited information is known, and treatments have not been proven effective, and they are under study.
He said: «This responsibility necessitates the doctors to strictly adhere to the preventive measures while dealing with patients or suspected of being infected, so that the infection does not pass to them, which called the Abu Dhabi Health Department to provide hotel rooms for all medical teams and staff dealing with patients, to ensure their safety and that of their families. ».
He added: «On the other hand, we, as a medical cadre in the Emirates, are proud to have served us to the homeland and to play our role to the fullest, and we are fighting this virus, and we thank God that we are in the Emirates, where the state provided us with all the supplies and needs, and when comparing the situation internally with the external situation we feel The difference really is, ”he continued.“ My medical studies were outside the country, where I got a Bachelor’s of Medicine from one of the European universities, and now when I communicate with colleagues from other countries, and I hear their complaints about the lack of personal protection methods for doctors, I really feel the difference, and thank God that I In the UAE".
Precautionary measures
Dr. Mohamed Ibrahim Al-Hayas indicated that Sheikh Khalifa Medical City adheres to the precautionary measures of the World Health Organization and the Abu Dhabi Health Department, to protect medical personnel and all workers and those who frequent them. The place where we are, and the medical staff and all those who deal with patients suspected of having Corona perform periodic exams once a week.
Mohamed El-Hayas: Doctors are fighting a decisive battle against a fierce enemy, and it is not their battle alone, but the battle of all.