Front line Diary of South Korean Nurses

It’s 4 a.m. The hospital is like a deserted island. But there are still echoes of medical workers who worked through the nights in hazmat suits.

Here we are at the front line of the COVID-19 pandemic. When will the battle end?

In the isolation unit, 3 nurses work as one team in 3 rotating shifts.

[Soundbite]
Hello. Let me fill you in. There are 6 people in admission.

The day starts with the handover.

[Soundbite]
The patient is an Indian national so eating pork is forbidden. The patient came through the Dalseong health center.

[Soundbite]
A urine hCG test conducted today came out negative.

[Soundbite]
Lyou Ji-kyoung (Head nurse): There was a time when 15 people were admitted in one day, a couple of days after the 31st confirmed patient came in. After that, they just kept coming – non-stop. We filled up the first floor, the second, the third… It was like a war zone back then.

[Soundbite]
Lee Mi-yon (5 years as a nurse): It was unbelievable. Having 40 patients admitted in one day. We had to check for pre-existing conditions, medications they were taking, and once the prescription was issued, we had to conduct blood tests, deliver injections and measure their blood pressure and temperature. In the early days, we would receive new patients until 4 a.m.

[Soundbite]
Most of the 100 new infections reported yesterday came from Daegu and Gyeongsangbuk-do Province.

As of Aug. 13, the 6 patients who remain at Daegu Medical Center represent imported cases. A mother and her 8-month-old child are from Syria.

[Soundbite]
Lyou Ji-kyoung (Head nurse): The patient has to wear a hijab. She has to put it on before any men come into the room so she asked us to give her a heads up. Whether it’s someone from the Radiology Department or a male nurse, we give her a phone call beforehand. We tell her in English that a ‘man nurse’ is coming and she will get ready wearing a hijab.

[Soundbite]
Mi yon. (Yes.) Come quickly, it’s hot in there. (Sure.)

When assigned to the isolation unit, the first mission is learning how to put on and off a hazmat suit.

[Soundbite]
Well done. Your back is all wet. It’s hot, isn’t it?

Mi yon was placed in the isolation unit for the first time in 4 years since becoming a nurse. Taking off the hazmat suit, the first thing she dose is gulp down some iced water to cool down.

[Soundbite]
Lee Mi-yon (5 years as a nurse): At first, I just came here clueless. I didn’t know anything and my colleagues taught me how to put on the suit. In March and April, we would get changed as many as 4 times per duty a day.

[Soundbite]
It's time to hand out lunch to patients.

[Soundbite]
Yes, I’ll get changed and go in.

The hazmat suit never gets comfortable or familiar.

[Soundbite]
Chae Jong-yeob (3 years as a nurse): It’s a one-piece protective suit. We also put on two layers of gloves, a N95 face mask and goggles. These are footwear. Since I am fully wrapped up, no air gets in and it’s really steaming hot inside. It's a complete sauna.

It takes 20 minutes to put on the protective gear which weighs 3kg. The oxygen filter attached to the waist adds another 5kg. In less than 10 minutes, the whole body is drenched in sweat. Marks are left on the skin pressed by goggles and face masks. Foreheads are dented and cheeks turn reddish from the sweat. Bandages are plastered all over the place. All of this has become symbolic of front line medical workers fighting COVID-19. Even simple, routine tasks like locating veins and changing tubes are not easy when you're on wearing goggles and thick gloves. Workers also suffer from headaches and difficulty breathing.

[Soundbite]
Kim Na-hyeon (5 years as a nurse): I even thought to myself that I might die of suffocation, but I just stuck it out because you have to do what needs to be done before leaving. There’s a separate door for discharging patients in the rear side and it takes you directly outside. Many times, I wondered if I should take the suit off and just walk out that door and go home and not come to work. We all often had these thoughts because it was so tough in the beginning.

Late at night, after a long gruelling day, some nurses visit a funeral hall.

[Soundbite]
Some may be shocked to find anyone dozing at a funeral parlor.

[Soundbite]
Lee Eun-kyung (Nurse): When we watch the news leaving work and see the number of cases further rising, we wonder when this will end and when will we get to see our family.

That’s how another day goes by.

Hopefully today will also pass.

[Soundbite]
(I’m just going to clear this up and go.) Okay.

Isolation units block out everything in order to prevent virus transmission. With the window in between, you can’t hear people on the other side. That’s why the window has become a chalkboard of sorts, a communication channel to pass on messages and stories.
A message someone has left - It’s hard, isn’t it? - painfully resonates among front line workers

[Soundbite]
Kim Na-hyeon (5 years as a nurse): People around me used to worry but now they are proud. My family and friends say they’re proud of me.

But we don’t always feel like heroes. Some lose out on many precious moments with loved ones.

[Soundbite]
Lee Mi-yon (5 years as a nurse): My father passed away while I was tending to COVID-19 patients. He’d been ill for a while so when I told him I couldn’t see him for a while, he asked for how long. I said maybe I'll get to see him by summer but he passed away in May. I only saw his final moments.

Every day, I'm needed at the hospital as duty calls. I must be here to save one more life.

[Soundbite]
Kim Na-hyeon (5 years as a nurse): There was a patient who initially arrived with tubes attached and didn’t say a word but later, was able to eat without help from others and talked to us by the time of discharge. These patients make my work so worthwhile and rewarding. Even though I was burned out, I felt alright again.

[Soundbite]
Lyou Ji-kyoung (Head nurse): It was incredible to see how patients overcame the disease and recovered. Even patients we thought were in a critical state and might pass away within a few days made it to the end, fully recovered and left the hospital. Those moments are truly rewarding.

[Soundbite]
Open your eyes. You should leave the hospital soon!

[Soundbite]
You made it. Good job. Get treated well at another hospital now.

[Soundbite]
You’ve done so well. Hello guardian.

On days when patients are discharged, the clapping and applause are not just for them but also for ourselves.

[Soundbite]
Keep it up. Well done. Keep up the great work. (Mi yon, go home now!) Okay.

7 months have passed in the isolation unit. We sincerely hope and pray all patients in this ward will live to leave the hospital.

[Soundbite]
Kim Young-mi (Head nurse): We’d be returning to our daily routines as nurses. There are other patients waiting for us, so we’re going back to normal life.

Patients are returning to their daily lives. Words they leave are a huge encouragement.

After overcoming the Daegu crisis, K-quarantine is facing another big challenge. Cluster infections are soaring in the metropolitan area. Once again, we are putting back on hazmat suits to prevent a second wave of COVID-19.