Wednesday, 9 March, 2022.
They pointed out that since the vaccination rates had increased in North Cyprus, the number of patients in intensive care suffering from Covid-19 had decreased.
Everyone should be vaccinated in order to be protected against the worst effects of the virus, they emphasised.
Four Anaesthesia and Resuscitation specialists Dr. Levent Gundost, Dr. Rashid Bedouin, Dr. Şükrü Onbaşı and Dr. Ersu Çelebi who recently joined the team, spoke to a Turkish News Agency Cyprus (TAK) reporter about their experiences during the pandemic. They said that if they wrote about it, it would turn into a book.
They also referred to the anxiety, mental and physical fatigue and sadness resulting from the pandemic. Fear was particularly prevalent regarding stories of patients in intensive care with the coronavirus.
In March 2020 Dr. Burhan Nalbantoğlu State Hospital in Nicosia had a six-bed intensive care unit which was expanded with the construction of the Pandemic Centre.
In the last few months, most of the patients who have been hospitalised in intensive care are elderly and unvaccinated. Diebetic patients were the worst affected by Covid-19, they said.
The pandemic had also affected pregnant women with suppressed immune systems and reduced lung capacities.
“A pregnant woman was admitted to the intensive care unit. The 29-year-old patient, who was unvaccinated, died. We, as anesthesiologists, were present at the birth of more than 20 pregnant women who were hospitalised in the Pandemic Hospital, after contracting Covid-19.
“In the normal cases [non-Covid] in the intensive care unit, patients could see their relatives for 5-10 minutes a day, which was a morale booster for them. Since there was no such opportunity here with Covid-19 infections, the psychology of the patients was badly affected.
“Every day, we talked to the relatives of the patients on the phone without any interruption and shared information. There were people who came here, we went out and talked to them. There were family relatives who virtually set up camp in front of the hospital. We slept together and woke up together… We treated them like our own family. Telling people that you have lost loved ones is not easy and not something you can get used to. When our hands were tied, we shared this with families too”.
For full report click here – Yeniduzen