turned to the clinical setting. Things were nowhere near the same.
At our clinical sites, we must take our temperature every morning,
wear masks all day, remain distanced from our peers and shower
ASAP after hospital work. No student can provide in-person care
for patients with any respiratory symptoms or fever. Outside of
these rules, our roles remained the same: we still talked to patients
and learned from each encounter.
As a young medical student, the initial way I hope to gain respect
from an older patient is through a strong introduction and firm
handshake. This has been replaced with a gentle wave. Before, I
would sit close to my patients, calm, smiling to begin, to help them
feel comfortable discussing their health. Now, I am distanced and
my facial expressions are masked. We are taught that our hands
are the best tool we have for physical exams - yet now I feel there
is hesitancy to use them. Even when I am able to examine a patient,
it is through the artificial touch of latex gloves. Such simple
communication had established much more than I ever realized,
symbolizing trust between physician and patient. Now we have to
learn a new way.
Talking with my patients these last few weeks, we have decided
that fear and uncertainty still reign. People are struggling. Worries
about life, work, health and the future are at levels that patients have
never personally seen. Their usual workout, their routines and daily
activities are gone or changed. They are adapting as best they can.
Consistently, they have gained weight, they are eating worse foods
and more frequently while at home all day. Alcohol consumption
has gone up as people try to fill their time and cope with their new
lives now. Physicians are giving patients grace and encouragement,
but COVID-19 is affecting humanity in all aspects of health – it may
take years to resolve its repercussions.
Now that we are halfway through 2020, a year that began with so
much optimism, I believe that we have a choice as to how we move
forward. As physicians and medical students, we must find ways
to connect with our patients and gain trust beyond the masks. We
must now more than ever support our patients with their mental
health as much as their physical health through interventions such
as mindfulness techniques, therapists, medications and the utilization
of social workers. Sitting with patients, listening to them as
we do, is helpful in itself. As medical professionals, we must look
beyond propaganda and stay educated on evidence-based medicine.
As citizens, we must set an example to others of the importance of
remaining socially distanced, wearing masks in public and refraining
from high risk activities. Though fear and uncertainty inevitably
remain, it is vital that hope still prevail – for breakthrough treatments,
an effective vaccine and the time when all can safely return
to society.
Ellie Romes is a fourth-year medical student at the University of Louisville School
of Medicine.
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FEATURE
AUGUST 2020 19