DOCTORS NEED YOUR HELP

While doctors are fighting COVID-19 they are too removed from the general public and do not have an opportunity to share what they are facing.

Many hospitals, clinics, and facilities still do not have adequate PPE (personal protective equipment like masks) for doctors. 

Here is what one doctor (one of my medical school classmates) wrote today:

"I sacrificed my health in residency during 9/11 . I am searching for ways to get ppe. I keep saying it’s like sending in troops with no bullets. a group of doctors was crowdsourcing on alibaba . I will post back if I know of answers and hope someone here can help you quickly . The last we heard Was the government was distributing 1 million masks and that number sounds pathetic."

It is of utmost importance that first line healthcare providers are protected as much as possible.

Would you want to see a doctor who has not been properly protected from the virus because his hospital administration demands that he works but does not provide him with enough protection? Or even worse, if you can't see a doctor at all? If we do not protect are first-line providers many of them will get sick and will no longer be able to help others.

What we need to do as a community is minimize the spread of the virus by social distancing and by maximum hygiene. 

The other thing you can do, is ask healthcare practitioners in your area if they need anything. If you know of a source where doctors can purchase masks that can protect them from the coronavirus, please share it with me, and please share it with healthcare practitioners who are in desperate need of those resources.

With gratitude, 
Dr. Maria Danilychev, MD