As one of the lead clinicians at the hospital, Dr Renaldo Christoffels, Family Physician at Wesfleur Hospital in Atlantis, deals with all clinical service delivery issues at the hospital and the Mamre Clinic.
Having experienced the most recent peak during the third wave in Atlantis and surrounds, Dr Chistoffels is appealing to the community to join in the fight against Covid-19 by increasing efforts as far as possible to social distance, wear masks, wash hands/sanitise and to keep gatherings as small as possible.
False information doesn’t help
“Every morning when I arrive at work, between 07:30 and 08:00, there is already a queue of people waiting outside to be tested. Although the numbers are starting to decrease now in terms of Covid-19 positive cases requiring hospital admission, the numbers of positive cases that are tested at the hospital are still high. It’s been two years, the way we live our lives and interact with people should have changed by now, and the saddest part is that it hasn’t for most of us. When you are actually listening to the patient’s stories, the sad reality is that it is exposure that could have been avoided.
“People are attending weddings of friends or family and later they find out there was a positive contact who attended the event. Patients end up needing to isolate and are bringing their elderly family relatives that live with them for testing because of the exposure.”
During the peak the hospital was so full that they had to convert their non-Covid-19 spaces into temporary Covid-19 wards to accommodate more beds. There were just too many positive clients coming in. And the false information spread on WhatsApp and social media does not make it any easier as these influence the decisions patients need to make concerning whether they are going to take the Covid-19 vaccine or not.
“I have many patients coming in my office for consultations or needing paperwork to be signed off for their employers and who refuse to take the vaccine. After some guidance addressing their questions, they choose to wait. I am concerned because these are patients who are high-risk and have serious comorbidities such as HIV, TB, diabetes etc.
“We have had no adverse events related to the vaccine here at the hospital in Atlantis and at the Mamre CDC. Yet there is still paranoia and fear – people are worried that the vaccine will harm them. We have noted that the bulk of patients who have been admitted for serious Covid-19 symptoms and even those who have passed away have unfortunately not been vaccinated.
“I need our community to understand that by taking the vaccine the risk of you suffering with severe Covid-19 symptoms or death is significantly reduced!”
Responsibility for your behaviour
“Then there’s the challenge of people not realising they need to take responsibility with their behaviour to prevent the spread of Covid-19.
“At times I am called to come out at night to the hospital and on a Friday night or over the weekend, life appears to be ‘normal’. Residents are dressed up, going to parties, the shebeens are busy.
“There are no masks, no social distancing. People are not ‘fighting’ this disease. Yet, we as doctors on the frontline, are fighting every, single day.
“I can recall how at the worst part of the peak, things seemed absolutely crazy. Some of our doctors were sick at home, thankfully only with mild Covid-19 symptoms because they have all been vaccinated. There were so many patients admitted to the hospital with shortness of breath or showing other severe Covid-19 symptoms. They could all verify they were in contact with a known positive. It was really horrible, our wards were all full. Our ICU was bursting at the seams.
“You are managing a patient who is severely ill with Covid-19 and then the added task of managing a family that is upset and very concerned. On top of that you have patients arriving who are dead. They are wheeled passed you, lifeless. You have to swab them and the results show that they passed away from Covid-19. Then you have to swab the grieving family because they were all exposed,” says Dr Christoffels.
“I want to plead with the community to continue practicing Covid-19 preventative behaviour. No patient exists in isolation. They are human, connected to a family unit, and so people often don’t realise the complexity of managing each positive case. It is so taxing on a us as health workers. Everyone is stretched beyond their capacity.”
‘Some days I have up to five patients who pass away’
“Hospitals are full. The saddest part for me is that when I listen and dissect the stories as to how people contracted the virus, I find out it was because there was no social distancing, sanitising or wearing masks. I have days when up to five patients pass away. You leave the hospital and you are on your way home. . . you think of the effort that your whole team put in to treat each and every one of those patients. At times like that, I can’t lose hope. I have to remember that I have a team that gave their best, and they need my support too.
This process of dealing with death and choosing to push forward was a constant repetition for three or four weeks during our peak. Dealing with death – and doing what you can to keep going, keep fighting.
“What I still find difficult is trying to come to terms with how unpredictable this virus is and how it affects people differently. We had deaths that were totally ‘unexpected’ – young people in their prime, passing away.
“You treat your patient and all the vitals look promising. And then a few hours later, the patient takes a turn for the worst and they die. You feel gutted!
“Patients with no comorbidities that are healthy, breadwinners for their families, and they are gone. And then there are instances where we have seen patients who were worse off and they pull through. This is a small silver lining for us and as doctors this is what we try to focus on – the small wins. Yes, the trauma and sadness is all around us, but each day it is what gets us through – focusing on what went well for the day.
“We see patients coming back after recovery to complete some paperwork and it gives you hope. Sometimes you have to hold on that one little event that made your way, you realise that all the effort you put in is so worth it.
“I am urging our clients not to stay at home if they feel their symptoms are getting worse. Coming to the hospital is not a death sentence. We are sending people home recovered. People need to lose the fear of the hospital because we are not killing people, that’s a myth, we give our best to each and every patient.
“The team is strong and dynamic. As I said, this virus is unpredictable and this is what people don’t understand. So for me, as a clinician the best advice would be to put all your effort in to try and NOT contract Covid-19. I think people feel the need to stay connected and I understand that.
Wash your hands, social distance, keep your gatherings small. And if you have not vaccinated as yet, VACCINATE! I really hope this sinks in.”
