Skip to content
  • About
  • Contact
  • Contribute
  • Book
  • Careers
  • Podcast
  • Recommended
  • Speaking
  • All
  • Physician
  • Practice
  • Policy
  • Finance
  • Conditions
  • .edu
  • Patient
  • Meds
  • Tech
  • Social
  • Video
    • All
    • Physician
    • Practice
    • Policy
    • Finance
    • Conditions
    • .edu
    • Patient
    • Meds
    • Tech
    • Social
    • Video
    • About
    • Contact
    • Contribute
    • Book
    • Careers
    • Podcast
    • Recommended
    • Speaking

This king of all viral syndromes is here

Earl Stewart, Jr., MD
Conditions
April 7, 2020
59 Shares
Share
Tweet
Share

We are still in the office.  I go daily, either dressed in scrubs or shirt and tie, in an effort to maintain some sense of normalcy.  I can feel the anguish of staff who themselves are deemed “essential.”  Their apprehension about the possibilities of themselves being infected adds a starchy thickener to the office atmosphere as they answer phone calls, receive medical records via fax, and schedule appointments while postponing others.  This is their usual, but what is rather unusual is that they are doing all of this now in gloves and masks.  It is impossible to feel alone with the accompaniment of such dedicated clinical and non-clinical staff, who overcome their own unease and unrest to wake up each morning in the age of viral pandemic, get dressed, leave their families who they cannot help but think of all day long, and travel once heavily populated streets to work.  They drive to be there to help our patients—to help me.

Yet, although it is seemingly impossible for me to feel alone in still functioning practice space, there are some things only I can do alone.  A once filling schedule of preventive, established patient, new patient, and late afternoon sick visits now face remarkable dwindling to just five or eight a day, with half of those visits being virtual or telephone-based.  It has taken sheer accommodation on all sides, constant impromptu updates from managerial staff on the newest of policies, and we acclimate.  We learn and relearn.  We remain up-to-date as much as possible.  Still trying to reclaim the time of some existence of normalcy of a life and a medical practice that once was not that long before, I cannot help but to think as I shut the door of my office to do a virtual visit with this teleconferencing platform that I am alone in here with no examination bed.  There’s no other physical presence.  There’s no diagnostic equipment other than the stethoscope I drape across my neck to remind the patient that he or she is seeing a physician.  I am behind a desk at a computer, clicking a “start video” button, and then, in the age of pandemic, I am no longer alone.  Then, we talk.

Toward the end of the day, every day, there is a patient or two who comes in.  The appointments are usually scheduled after lunchtime for these types of visits.  “PUI” is the label for “person under investigation,” often nestled gently next to the patient’s name on my schedule.  Other primary care offices close by are closed down for two weeks.  Urgent care just told one of these patients to “just reach out to your PCP” regarding his symptoms.  The emergency physician didn’t test the patient at the time of his or her evaluation of the patient just the day before.  Now, the onus falls upon me.

I’ve never seen one of these patients before.  Granted, some things may have changed since those other physicians’ evaluations of her, and they are too in the fight against this.  The medical assistant assured me that the patient is ready to be seen.  I open the medical record and review the chart.  Documented symptoms rang out like “loss of smell” and “dry cough, muscle aches, and chills,” meeting my eyes as I begin to formulate a plan of care in my mind.  We’ve designated rooms at the office for them—rooms 8 and 9, which are down a long hall’s walk from my personal office.  I stop on the way to don the appropriate PPE.  Fortunately, for now, we have enough.  My gown, my gloves, and then my face mask are in place, and placing them has become somewhat of a ritual.  In the midst of it all, I say a solemn yet brief prayer for protection, and I proceed because that is what I was taught and trained to do.  I remember to grab the appropriate swab kit.  I knock on the door.  I enter alone.  There is usually no response, so I proceed, and I see a patient there alone.  She is often afraid of the possibilities.  He often has a dry cough.  I occasionally see red eyes, and I’m not sure to distinguish that as a manifestation of the disease course in this patient, or if it was just because he or she was crying.  I ask questions and interview to create some sense of normalcy, but it is palpable to both me, and I presume the patient both that this all being normal is so far from the truth.

The late Gospel Alto Gloria Griffin of the Roberta Martin Singers would belt out beautifully with her wonderfully mellifluous voice:

The marketplace is empty.
There’s no traffic in the street.
The builders’ tools are silent.
There’s no time to harvest wheat.

Busy housewives cease their labor.
In the courtroom there’s no debate.
Work on earth has been suspended.
As the King comes through the gate.

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about this song entitled “The King is Coming” and its eschatological verse of providing Christian hope for days to come.  I do not remember when I first heard it, but the allusions to a day when life as we know it all around the world would pause and be altered forever are fiercely reminiscent of our lives in the era of COVID-19.  The Latin student from years ago within me cannot help but remember that corona translates into English as “crown.”  It does not discriminate based on gender, ethnicity, age, or socioeconomic status.  It is making every knee bow.  It is making every tongue confess.  Like the King Mrs. Griffin sang about, this is not a “respecter of persons.”  This king of all viral syndromes is coming and is here.  This is our 1918 flu pandemic.  As I’ve said before to others, I write now:  I never knew my training in medicine would be preparing me for something like this.  I’m intensely grateful it did.

Earl Stewart, Jr. is an internal medicine physician in Atlanta, Georgia, a 2023 Doximity Digital Health Fellow, and a 2023 Climate and Health Equity Fellow (CHEF) with the Medical Society Consortium on Climate and Health. He can be reached on E.S.J., M.D., LinkedIn, Twitter @EarlStewartJr, and Doximity.

Image credit: Shutterstock.com

Prev

Hold on to humanity while we still can

April 7, 2020 Kevin 0
…
Next

Quotes and songs to help you survive COVID-19

April 7, 2020 Kevin 1
…

Tagged as: COVID, Infectious Disease

Post navigation

< Previous Post
Hold on to humanity while we still can
Next Post >
Quotes and songs to help you survive COVID-19

More by Earl Stewart, Jr., MD

  • EHRs must do more to help combat climate change

    Earl Stewart, Jr., MD
  • Provider me not

    Earl Stewart, Jr., MD
  • The why doesn’t matter: Highland Park

    Earl Stewart, Jr., MD

Related Posts

  • Can the Maternal CARE Act fail moms? 

    Sonal Patel, MD
  • Our patients matter, but at what cost to our families? 

    James A. Quinn, PA-C
  • For students with test stress, medical schools leave a void  

    Steve Blatt, MD
  • Opening schools? The devil is in the details. 

    Raghav Gupta, MD
  • Physician Suicide Awareness Day: Where are the patients? 

    Jennifer M. Sweeney
  • Practicing medicine without a license is illegal.  Yet cannabis dispensaries are doing it.

    Jill Becker, MD

More in Conditions

  • Contemporary weight loss: Unveiling the quest for elusive elixir

    Osmund Agbo, MD
  • Why patients write: stress relief, self-care, and sharing experiences

    R. Lynn Barnett
  • Misinformed claims and the offensiveness of discrediting COVID-19 vaccine development

    Angel Garcia Otano, MD
  • Family support is pivotal in the treatment of schizophrenia

    Frank Chen, MD
  • Exploring disfigurement and self-worth

    Kathleen Watt
  • Are we doing enough to help chronic pain sufferers?

    Adam Strohl, MD
  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • I’m a doctor, and I almost died during childbirth

      Bayo Curry-Winchell, MD | Physician
    • Reigniting after burnout: 3 physician stories

      Kim Downey, PT | Physician
    • Inside the grueling life of a surgery intern

      Randall S. Fong, MD | Physician
    • Motorcycle helmet laws: Balancing freedom and financial impact

      Stephen Cohn, MD | Conditions
    • Lively communication in the service industry

      Deepak Gupta, MD | Physician
    • How compassionate leadership saved this physician [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
  • Past 6 Months

    • Medical gaslighting: a growing challenge in today’s medical landscape

      Tami Burdick | Conditions
    • Balancing opioid medication in chronic pain

      L. Joseph Parker, MD | Conditions
    • I want to be a doctor who can provide care for women: What states must I rule out for my medical education?

      Nandini Erodula | Education
    • Navigating the broken medical system: challenges faced by foreign medical graduates

      Anonymous | Physician
    • Mourning the silent epidemic: the physician suicide crisis and suggestions for change

      Amna Shabbir, MD | Physician
    • The essence of medicine: genuine connections in practice

      Jennifer Tillman, MD | Physician
  • Recent Posts

    • Lively communication in the service industry

      Deepak Gupta, MD | Physician
    • Contemporary weight loss: Unveiling the quest for elusive elixir

      Osmund Agbo, MD | Conditions
    • Balancing efficiency and compassion [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • Reigniting after burnout: 3 physician stories

      Kim Downey, PT | Physician
    • Why patients write: stress relief, self-care, and sharing experiences

      R. Lynn Barnett | Conditions
    • Inside the grueling life of a surgery intern

      Randall S. Fong, MD | Physician

Subscribe to KevinMD and never miss a story!

Get free updates delivered free to your inbox.


Find jobs at
Careers by KevinMD.com

Search thousands of physician, PA, NP, and CRNA jobs now.

Learn more

Leave a Comment

Founded in 2004 by Kevin Pho, MD, KevinMD.com is the web’s leading platform where physicians, advanced practitioners, nurses, medical students, and patients share their insight and tell their stories.

Social

  • Like on Facebook
  • Follow on Twitter
  • Connect on Linkedin
  • Subscribe on Youtube
  • Instagram

CME Spotlights

From MedPage Today

Latest News

  • What Is the 'Carrot Tan' Trending on Social Media? A Dermatologist Weighs In
  • Did Gabapentin Improve Post-COVID Olfaction?
  • Fentanyl Death Trends; Food Additives and Heart Disease
  • What If the Doctor Is Out?
  • Reduced Mortality Seen in Cancer Survivors Who Meet Exercise Guidelines

Meeting Coverage

  • Loneliness Needs to Be Treated Like Any Other Health Condition, Researcher Suggests
  • Stopping Medical Misinformation Requires Early Detection
  • AI Has an Image Problem in Healthcare, Expert Says
  • Want Better Health Outcomes? Check Out What Other Countries Do
  • ERS Roundup: Cell Transplant Boosts Lung Function in COPD Patients
  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • I’m a doctor, and I almost died during childbirth

      Bayo Curry-Winchell, MD | Physician
    • Reigniting after burnout: 3 physician stories

      Kim Downey, PT | Physician
    • Inside the grueling life of a surgery intern

      Randall S. Fong, MD | Physician
    • Motorcycle helmet laws: Balancing freedom and financial impact

      Stephen Cohn, MD | Conditions
    • Lively communication in the service industry

      Deepak Gupta, MD | Physician
    • How compassionate leadership saved this physician [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
  • Past 6 Months

    • Medical gaslighting: a growing challenge in today’s medical landscape

      Tami Burdick | Conditions
    • Balancing opioid medication in chronic pain

      L. Joseph Parker, MD | Conditions
    • I want to be a doctor who can provide care for women: What states must I rule out for my medical education?

      Nandini Erodula | Education
    • Navigating the broken medical system: challenges faced by foreign medical graduates

      Anonymous | Physician
    • Mourning the silent epidemic: the physician suicide crisis and suggestions for change

      Amna Shabbir, MD | Physician
    • The essence of medicine: genuine connections in practice

      Jennifer Tillman, MD | Physician
  • Recent Posts

    • Lively communication in the service industry

      Deepak Gupta, MD | Physician
    • Contemporary weight loss: Unveiling the quest for elusive elixir

      Osmund Agbo, MD | Conditions
    • Balancing efficiency and compassion [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • Reigniting after burnout: 3 physician stories

      Kim Downey, PT | Physician
    • Why patients write: stress relief, self-care, and sharing experiences

      R. Lynn Barnett | Conditions
    • Inside the grueling life of a surgery intern

      Randall S. Fong, MD | Physician

MedPage Today Professional

An Everyday Health Property Medpage Today
  • Terms of Use | Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • DMCA Policy
All Content © KevinMD, LLC
Site by Outthink Group

Leave a Comment

Comments are moderated before they are published. Please read the comment policy.

Loading Comments...