‘Emergency service is full of people who said, “I won’t get infected anyway”’

* Photos: AA

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Physicians of Pamukkale University Hospital (PAÜ) in Denizli have shared their experiences amid the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak.

Speaking to Sebahatdin Zeyrek from the state-run Anadolu Agency (AA), PAÜ Chief Physician İbrahim Türkçüler has noted that health workers have been working by risking their lives since the pandemic broke out.

Underlining that physicians have been striving to heal their patients, Türkçüer has stated that the process in question is a difficult experience for health workers as well as patients and their loved ones.

Academic Alten Oksay from the PAÜ Academic Emergency Department has also indicated that the majority of those diagnosed with COVID-19 made light of the disease and did not take measures.

'We witnessed really dramatic situations'

Indicating that they have been attaching considerable importance to masks and hygiene, PAÜ Chief Physician Türkçüer has also expressed "his disappointment that citizens do not abide by the rules."

"I need to note that we witnessed tragic situation at hospital, I especially explain them to our people," the physician said and briefly added:

"Even though COVID-19 patients are conscious, they have a sense of suffocation as they cannot breathe. I saw patients who were unable to say their names because they could not breathe.

"We witnessed really dramatic situations at the hospital. Three people having difficulty in breathing were sitting side by side at the emergency room and the entire family contracted coronavirus. The young one was discharged from the hospital while the mother and father lost their lives.

"We must be so afraid of coronavirus as we are afraid of dying. One of our patients who was taken in intensive care in March has just reached the level where s/he can be discharged from hospital. There is nothing like 'I will be hospitalized and treated immediately."

'Those who do not heed measures are in the majority'

Oksay from the PAÜ Academic Emergency Department Dr. Oskay has also told the AA that some of the patients who have come to the hospital previously thought that "nothing would happen to them":

"But they can take a turn for the worse and we can lose them. We lose some of the cases that came as a family. A whole family falls apart. It is really sad for us to inform the family members about their loss and share their sorrow.

"The only thing that we see in the patients is imprudence. When they say 'Oh no', they have already caught the virus. Emergency service is full of people who said, 'I won't get infected, anyway'.

"While we, despite being physicians, are concerned about the possibility of catching the disease, it is impossible to understand their ease. They cannot imagine that they or their loved ones can die. For this reason, we want them to be more prudent." (TP/SD)