COVID-19 nurse shares daily routine at Delnor in Geneva

GENEVA – The coronavirus pandemic has impacted every aspect of life in the U.S. – from shuttered shops to stay-at-home orders – but perhaps no area has seen more buffeting than in health care, where workers are on the front lines of treatment.

Nikki Wood, a registered nurse at Northwestern Medicine Delnor Hospital in Geneva, does 12-hour shifts three days a week in the COVID-19 unit.

Eryn Whiting of Geneva has been a registered nurse in Delnor’s emergency room for seven years. She’s used to seeing patients’ faces – and them seeing hers. But now, everybody wears a mask, impinging on the personal touch.

Both nurses spoke to the Kane County Chronicle about the impact of the virus on their work lives – and what they want the community to know.

Delnor's COVID-19 unit

“At first, it was definitely scary – because everything was new and guidelines were always changing,” said, Wood, 24, who has been a nurse for three years. “But after working with patients and seeing them recover and sending them home, I feel a lot better about it. … Getting someone on oxygen and seeing them improve. ... Sending someone home is a good feeling.”

Northwestern Medicine spokeswoman Kimberly Waterman confirmed that 36 patients who were treated for the virus at Delnor went home, but she would not comment on how many had died there.

Kane County Coroner Rob Russell confirmed that two Delnor patients died of the virus.

The hospital took a regular medical-surgical unit and dedicated its 32 beds for coronavirus patients on March 24.

If patients become critically ill, they go from the COVID-19 unit to intensive care, Wood said.

She wears a mask, face shield, gown and gloves as she cares for each patient. She checks their oxygen levels, their blood pressure, listens to their lung sounds and dispenses medications.

According to the Centers for Disease Control, there are no drugs or other therapeutics for a person with the virus, only supportive care, including supplemental oxygen and ventilators.

All her protective gear is changed between each patient's room visit.

“I go into an anteroom, take everything off and throw it away,” Wood said.

'It's hard to get a break from it'

Caring for a COVID-19 patients is not so different than caring for someone with pneumonia, she said.

“I’ve taken care of them before,” Wood said.

But among the things that are different is that Wood and other nurses sit six feet apart for breaks, maintaining social distancing. They take meal breaks alone, so other nurses can cover their patients while they eat, she said.

And while Wood cares for coronavirus patients all day at work, there is no escape once her shift is over because all the news is about the coronavirus.

“It’s hard to get a break from it – that is what is the most challenging part of it for me,” Wood said. “We see it all day at work and everywhere in the media.”

At home in Bolingbrook, Wood goes into the garage and all her personal clothes go directly into the washer, she puts on a robe and takes a shower – after wiping off all the door knobs with Lysol.

“I live with my parents and my sister and I’m trying to be mindful of them,” Wood said.

Whiting, 29, said she enjoys being an emergency room nurse because she likes the fast-paced environment.

“I like the time we do have with patients. I enjoy making meaningful relationships with patients,” Whiting said.

“Now we have a bunch of PPE (personal protective equipment) on and they can’t see our facial expressions. And it’s hard for me to see their expressions because of the masks on their faces. … I’m not getting that time to get to know the patient and the family members – families can’t go with them. It’s a huge change.”

Delnor, like most other hospitals during the pandemic, limits who can go into the emergency room with a patient, though there is flexibility when the patient is a child or someone who needs support.

The emergency room takes all patients – from heart attacks and strokes to broken bones or severe flu symptoms. Whiting said many get ruled out for the virus, but everyone wears the personal protective equipment to be safe.

One thing Delnor has done for the nurses is to launder their scrubs at the hospital so they don’t wear them to go home, Whiting said. She praised that extra step the hospital was taking so that she and other health workers can wear their own clothes home.

Like the nurses on Wood’s team, Whiting’s team doesnt’t sit together for meals or other breaks either, as they maintain social distancing.

But the distancing and the pandemic has caused the team to become closer through texting and talking.

“Talking with my fellow teammates helps me cope. We are like a big support group,” Whiting said. “They are going through the same thing.”

'Please stay at home'

Whiting and Wood said all the health care staff at the hospital were appreciating the community reaching out to them.

“We’re getting a lot of cards, gifts and food. It’s overwhelming and amazing,” Whiting said. “I wanted to make sure there was a thank-you for them helping us get through the day.”

Wood said in addition to food deliveries, thank-you cards and gifts, the community has left chalk messages on the sidewalk outside the entrance the nurses use from the employee parking lot.

“They’ve left notes on the windshields,” Wood said. “It keeps everyone in good spirits. It’s great having the community supporting us here.”

One other thing the nurses would like the public to do to support them and their communities: Maintain the stay-at-home order and practice social distancing.

“Continue to stay at home,” Whiting said. “I preach that. Please stay at home.”