Bowling was a member of the team that decided who would go where and do what. She was the one to tell the nurses that they had to leave their comfort zone and go work in an environment that was terrifying because of the many unknowns of the situation.
“As a leader, that was extremely difficult,†Bowling said.
On the leadership team, they decided to designate certain people to walk around the hospital and assist with PPE and education to help make sure people were as up to date as possible, especially because with all of the new information coming in from the CDC and other countries, the rules were constantly changing.
“The way the whole world united to come up with a treatment plan to get us through this crisis, to come up with a treatment and save as many people as we possibly can,†Bowling said, “I think that’s incredible.â€
Bowling, Smith and Thorn, along with their coworkers, had to leave their families behind every day to go to work. They had to drive on empty roads, go into a scary environment, and risk bringing home the virus as their families were able to stay home and do puzzles all day.
But while they were at work, the community recognized them as heroes. Bowling remembers people holding parades and prayer sessions in the hospital parking lot as well as bringing staff meals and thank-you cards.
“I would say that one of the greatest things that kept us going was the constant recognition from our communities,†Bowling said.
The beginning of what was thought to be the end
On Dec. 14, 2020, Sandra Lindsay, a nurse in New York, became the first American outside of clinical trials to receive a COVID-19 vaccine, according to theÂ
CDC. Since then, over 627,854,963 vaccine doses have been administered throughout the United States, withÂ
4,273,793 Hoosiers getting at least one dose—about 64% of the state’s population.
Indiana provides a COVID-19 dashboard as well as a vaccine dashboard to help keep Hoosiers and healthcare workers informed.
“The COVID-19 response was a multi-agency response that involved IDOH, FSSA, the Indiana National Guard, Department of Homeland Security and other state agencies, working together to get information and supplies where they were needed,†Jeni O’Malley, deputy chief of staff and chief communications officer at the Indiana Department of Health said in an email.
Berkley Rios, communications manager of the Indiana University Health Indianapolis Suburban Region, says IU Health requires all team members to receive the COVID-19 vaccine as a term of their employment.
“Vaccinating team members is a safe and effective way to protect patients and help reduce the spread of COVID-19 in facilities and in the community,” Rios said. “All COVID-19 vaccines currently available in the U.S. have been shown to be safe and highly effective at preventing severe illness, hospitalization, and death from COVID-19.”
Despite the vaccine and booster doses being widely available, many people refuse to get vaccinated.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau’sÂ
Household Pulse Survey, those who were unvaccinated against COVID-19 in early December 2021 reported deciding not to for a variety of reasons, such as “concerns about possible side effects, not trusting the COVID-19 vaccine, their doctor had not recommended it and difficulty obtaining it.â€
Although they could not directly comment on some choosing to not receive the vaccine, Bowling, Smith, and Thorn encouraged the public to make a difference by getting vaccinated.
“All I can say is vaccinate,” Smith said as Bowling and Thorn nodded in agreement. “Vaccinate if you haven’t already, it makes a difference.”
Healthcare workers suffered a lot of fear and anxiety during the pandemic. According to an article by theÂ
American Medical Association, in a 2020 survey of over 20,000 physicians and other workers, over half felt high fear of exposing themselves or their families to COVID-19, and 38% self-reported experiencing anxiety or depression.
To help healthcare workers take care of their mental health, Bowling says the leadership team would make sure the staff knew that they were there to listen to them, provide them a space to have quiet time, and help them as best as they could with whatever they needed.
The leadership team continues to try and help the staff fight COVID-19, whether it be mentally or physically, despite it being over two years since the first case was reported in the U.S.—because COVID-19 is still something that hospitals see every day.
“Covid is still here,” Bowling said. “It’s not gone, and it will be with us.”
Not much about all the negative side effects on healthy young people, particularly men, from the vaccine? Quoting the CDC doesn’t instill much confidence in the writer’s research either. The vaccine is helpful to a certain section of folks with co-morbidity issues, but it’s a proven fact the vaccine doesn’t keep anyone from getting COVID-19, just like cloth masks do more harm than good.
This post from VICTORY is just plain wrong on so many counts. He appears to be “anti-vax” and “anti-mask.” His comments contradict accepted IU HEALTH guidelines and recommended best practice health and safety procedures. Good Lord.
We know this guy. This is the same guy who is mad because there isn’t an “Indiana White Caucus” political action committee. Ding! Ding! Ding!
To wit:
City-County Observer
Victory — December 26, 2022 At 10:19 am
“Were there any changes to the Indiana White Legislative Caucus?”
Jack Clark seems to be a bit comprehension challenged as he is reading into my post what one might term “penumbra”. It appears he missed the word “cloth” in my mask reference and from where he pulled “anti-vax” one can only guess.
Probably from the same edifice that led him to the belief that I’m “mad because there isn’t an “Indiana White Caucus” political action committee.” I for one didn’t realize the Indiana Black Caucus was a PAC, but he seems to think so. Ding! Ding! Ding! (whatever that signifies in his mind)
VICTORY…Hmmmm.
Nope, I think I am spot on.
The lady dost protest too much, methinks.
What am I protesting? I’m explaining to you the misinterpretation you have of my post, while it appears you are merely trolling for attention, of which this is the last you will receive from me.
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