L’health emergency is about to reach its final stages. But the signs that this pandemic has left in each of us are indelible. The health personnel who, for two years, fought on the front line against the coronavirus are well aware of this. On the occasion of the National Day in memory of all the victims of the epidemic, Robertahealth worker of the Medicine of the Hospital of Legnano, with emotion, he brings us his testimony
«When you took service in the morning, on the delivery sheet the names of the patients had changed even during the night, not discharged but deceased – recalls Roberta -. And the bed did not remain free even for an hour, the time for sanitation and other hospitalization. We managed to manage 17 helmets at the same time, when in “normal” times medicine manages a maximum of three or four out of 36. A constant dull noise, interrupted only by the beeps of the monitors ».
The fear of infecting one’s family, the fear of having to treat a relative or colleague. And then the tiredness and tension that made themselves felt more and more every day. “We have always helped each other to cope with fatigue – says Roberta -. So much effort … too much effort. No rest. Hours upon hours. Endless weeks. Entire families hospitalized in the common areas. The hospital looked deserted, ghostly. One day I went down to the Covid emergency room and did not recognize the exit: the passage was also occupied by stretchers with patients. An unsettling vision. And then the ambulances lined up on the access ramp, the sirens and the blue flashing lights ».
Roberta remembers when oxygen cylinders were the most precious commodity. “How many will I have raised, I don’t know. I only know that they were heavy and a lot: there will always be my injured shoulder to remind me of that ». Then isolation of the patient away from family members, helpless at home. Dramatic moments in which healthcare personnel have repeatedly tried to go beyond their profession, overcoming the limits of anti-Covid masks and suits, so as not to leave patients alone. Lonly contact with relatives was through the cell phone with «the video calls and… unfortunately for some they were the last moments of contact with their families – so Roberta -. Heartbreaking moments. In the midst of all this, fortunately, the satisfaction of accompanying the healed people back to the door of the ward where we had a rainbow drawn by an elementary school child with the words “Everything will be fine”. Here the heart was filled with hope and strength ».
To remember those moments also the world of rescue that with its operators entered people’s homes. As explained by the White Cross of Legnano it has been “two years that have put us to the test”. Between health measures and direct contacts with the pain of families and fear. “None of us gave up.” However, the pandemic has shown a positive side, according to the rescuers: «Awareness has grown among people. There is greater consideration of the world of rescue and healthcare. People have come close to us. It is no coincidence that our volunteers have increased. Unfortunately, ignorance has not disappeared: it exists and is also being felt against the vaccine, which instead has proved to be a winning weapon against this pandemic ».