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Back To Work - June 2020 - Subscribe to Outpatient Surgery Magazine

Outpatient Surgery Magazine, providing current information on Surgical Services, Surgical Facility Administration, Outpatient Surgery News and Trends, OR Excellence and more.

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is common among COVID-19 patients. At that point, I had to let go of any sense of control and accept that I was just a patient who was fully dependent on her caretakers. The treatment for COVID-19 is essentially a race between the virus and the immune system. To give my immune system a boost, I was given a course of hydroxychloroquine, a malaria drug that has shown some promise in altering the immune system, slowing the virus's repli- cation and combatting the virus in its early stages. The drug hasn't been approved by the FDA, and we don't have enough objective research on its effectiveness. Plus, caregivers need to be vigilant to watch for changes in the patient's heart rate. In addition to the hydroxychloroquine, I was given oxygen at a 2.5-liter flow rate, a sub- cutaneous dose of enoxaparin to decrease the chance of blood clot formation and an incentive spirometer to keep my lungs active. I was also told to lay prone five times a day for 20 minutes each time to pro- mote inflation of my dorsal alveoli. During this time, I fully under- stood the gravity of the situation I was in. I had to will myself to stay positive, force myself to eat, use my spirometer and lay prone. It's hard to explain how exhausted this virus makes you feel. I have never felt anything close to the fatigue I felt from COVID-19. Alone with my thoughts I was hospitalized for a week. My care was excellent. Nurses came into my room for visits, and doctors visited at least daily. But I was in isolation, and it was lonely. I spent a lot of time staring off into space. The virus made me feel so tired that I didn't have the energy to do much else. What I remember most about my time in the hospital room 4 6 • O U T P A T I E N T S U R G E R Y M A G A Z I N E • J U N E 2 0 2 0 I was one of the lucky ones.

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