Sao Paulo (AFP)
Dr. Jaques Sztajnbok, head of the intensive care unit (ICU) of the Institute of Infectiology of Sao Paulo, often wakes up in the middle of the night because of the coronavirus, as does his wife Fabiane, infectious diseases specialist in the same hospital.
He is to read some of the 1,000 scientific studies published each month, in case "a new discovery can bring a piece to this puzzle of the Covid-19".
She is because she is "worried and anxious".
Despite this and the fear of exposing their two children, whom they no longer kiss when they return, they are on the front line in the battle against the pandemic in Sao Paulo, the megalopolis and capital of the state of the same name, the most affected in Brazil, with 2,851 dead.
At the Emilio Ribas Institute of Infectious Disease, the ICU reached 100% occupancy by mid-April, the 11 beds being occupied by Covid-19 patients.
The service deplores one death per day on average. Dr. Jaques Sztajnbok has not taken a single day off since mid-March, as he has "responsibility for the health of the patients but also of the team" which he leads, he explains to the 'AFP.
Several of his colleagues were arrested after being infected.
"As soon as my phone rings, I say to myself:" Do we still have a doctor who has fallen ill? +. This is a concern that we have never had in previous epidemics, "says the doctor, who has worked at the Institute of Infectious Disease for 28 years.
- "Cool and brave" -
So far, neither he nor his wife have had symptoms of covid-19. But everything is planned. "Since we have another apartment next door, if one of us gets sick, he will go to isolation," says Dr. Sztajnbok.
They set up a ritual when they return from the hospital: they leave all their belongings in the entrance of the family apartment, and do not approach the children until they have showered and put their clothes on. wash.
The couple, who met in 1997 during a measles epidemic, live in a large apartment with balconies and lots of plants, in the affluent neighborhood of Pinheiros, with their two children.
Ana, 12, is not too worried about her parents because "they are not in the risk group". As for Daniel, 10 years old, he finds that "it is very cool and courageous" that they are on the front line to treat the sick of this pandemic.
"At dinner, they always talk about what happened while on call, I find it interesting." Despite the admiration he has for them, Daniel does not want to become a doctor. "I don't want to see someone die," said the boy.
- "Tailor-made" treatment -
The spouses admit that they need more than ever to discuss together what they are going through in the hospital. "It helps us to hold on to having the same goal, to know that we're together in there," says Fabiane.
The two doctors had set themselves a rule from the start of this crisis: "disconnect" in the evening to preserve family life.
Impossible promise to keep for Dr. Sztajnbok, who, even if he changed into Bermuda shorts and thongs, celebrates his 55th birthday that night by keeping an eye on his laptop to follow the evolution of his patients and colleagues affected by Covid-19.
His children, their nanny Paloma who lives with them, and his wife organized a small virtual party with the rest of the family, connected by the Zoom application.
The doctor received a message from an intern in the middle of the anniversary evening: one of their patients, obese and in serious condition, had just found twice his respiratory capacity after he asked to be treated. put on her stomach, so that she breathes better.
Jaques can't believe it and read the message several times to his family reunited to cut the cake.
"This disease is very complex, we cannot apply the same treatment to all patients. Basically, you have to tailor-made for each case. That is why I cannot stop work, "he concedes.
"But it's so rewarding when a patient is better," said the doctor, confident that it was this obese patient who thought of blowing out his candles.
© 2020 AFP