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Inside the life of a volunteer EMT first responder in NYC, who decontaminates himself after every shift and has to pay for his own equipment: 'I still see people who won't take this seriously.'
Inside the life of a volunteer EMT first responder in NYC, who decontaminates himself after every shift and has to pay for his own equipment: 'I still see people who won't take this seriously.'
As told to Jimmy ImApr 10, 2020, 21:17 IST
Atma Degeyndt has been a volunteer emergency medical technician (EMT) and first responder in New York City for four years in addition to his full-time job helping startups.
He's working 16 to 24-hour days right now and pays for his own tactical jacket, stethoscope, medical backpack, and personal protective equipment.
Cardiac arrest calls have been the hardest to deal with - and he and his colleagues have begun trying to convince people to not go to the hospital unless their condition is critical.
He imagines he's a 'symptom-free carrier' of the coronavirus and uses a very detailed process for decontaminating his clothes, boots, and equipment before he enters his apartment.
Atma Degeyndt lives in the East Village and has been a volunteer emergency medical technician (EMT)/first responder in New York City for four years. He's been on the front lines of NYC hospitals since the coronavirus pandemic.
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He knew how bad the coronavirus would be before it was deemed a pandemic
I am a volunteer EMT. Usually, I go out on weekends. I deal with car accidents, asthma attacks, stabbings, etcetera. You know, the kind of emergencies you expect in a city like New York.
Then I got an email. It was around March 10. The state and city government agencies wanted to deploy all the volunteer agencies. They wanted to make us part of 911, give us city radios and have us answer calls anywhere needed. That was a big deal. That meant they knew this was going to be bad.
Between his day job helping startups get off the ground and his work as a volunteer EMT and field training officer, he's working nearly 16 to 24 hours a day
I've been leaving my day job at 3:30 p.m. for a 4 p.m. to midnight shift on the ambulance. I usually get home at about 1 or 2 a.m. - though one night, I had to work 4 p.m. to midnight in Brooklyn, then raced to Manhattan to work midnight to 8 a.m., because the city needed all hands on deck. The volunteer agencies are asking their members to give their all.
I love what I do, but it does put some wear and tear on my body and my budget. I pay for my uniform, patches, tactical jacket, stethoscope, and a medical backpack. I also buy some of my protective equipment, such as gloves and masks.
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The medical equipment shortage is real
There is a frightening shortage of masks, gowns, face shields, gloves and alcohol wipes. The wipes are crucial for sanitizing the stretcher and any medical equipment we use, so we're always looking for people who can make donations either in the form of cash or supplies.
Do you have a personal experience with the coronavirus you'd like to share? Or a tip on how your town or community is handling the pandemic? Please email covidtips@businessinsider.com and tell us your story.
What a typical night is like: Cardiac arrests are the hardest calls
We take the gear we have, and we head out each night to become 911. We receive radio calls from the New York Fire Department's (FDNY) central dispatcher. There will be two or three of us in the ambulance. For every patient we see, we will wear gloves, safety glasses, and an N95 face mask. If we go to a cardiac arrest, we wear gowns and a second set of gloves. The cardiac arrests are the hardest calls right now. More than once, we have been present at the moment of capture and yet were unable to save the patient.
In the past, if a patient goes into cardiac arrest and we witness it or are there within three minutes, we can often save them. We use a defibrillator to shock them and restart their hearts. But for COVID-19 patients, this is not happening. We are not getting any of them back — and now the Department of Health doesn't want us to bring dead patients to the hospital, so we are pronouncing them dead in the field and turning the bodies over to the police who have to wait for a coroner.
Other times we get a call for a sick person with a fever and cough. When we go to their apartment, we try to cut down the amount of contact. We take turns being the first one to make patient contact. If we have them, we will use a full-body Tyvek suit. These suits make us look like spacemen, but they give us full protection. This is especially important if we need to transport them to the hospital.
Another significant change in patient care is that we try to convince people to not go to the hospital unless they are critical. If they don't seem to have the virus, going to the hospital puts them at higher risk. Additionally, New York hospitals don't have enough beds, so they end up sending all but the most critical patients home anyway.
Before coronavirus, I always told people to go to the hospital out of an abundance of caution. Now I ask them to stay away.
What it's like at NYC hospitals
The emergency rooms are over capacity. I have seen several ERs where almost every bed had an intubated patient. They are stuck in the ER waiting for space to open up in the hospital. I often wait an hour to get a patient seen by an admitting nurse. This means even more downtime for my crew and for every ambulance crew that brings in a patient.
While we wait around, we compare notes and stories with the other ambulance crews. We're all seeing and experiencing the same. There are many more cardiac arrests than ever before. One EMT shared a video with us from Facebook. It showed bodies fork-lifted into a refrigerated truck behind a Brooklyn hospital. This means the morgues are overflowing. It's been building up for weeks.
Even so, hospital crowding is a problem. The state government converted a massive convention center in Manhattan into a hospital. They are taking some of the overflow and can handle more than 2,000 patients.
Emergency calls have more than doubled
Since around March 25, I started to see an increase in radio calls for sick patients. By the end of March, the call volume had doubled. We went from an average 3,500 calls a day to 7,000 now. What might be keeping that number from going any higher is people's fear of going to the hospital. Patients have become too scared to go.
But the increase in volunteers is making a difference. The other night I was able to take a low priority radio call in the Bronx for a man with abdominal pain. When we arrived, I found him doubled over in pain, sweating, and pale. He had thrown up seven times. When I examined him, he had rigidity in the middle abdomen. I had to rule out an aortic aneurysm, peritonitis, or even a heart attack. That meant a trip to the ER. That night the wait at the hospital was not long. More likely than not, I saved his life.
After a night of work, Atma cleans all his gear outside his home
When I finally get home at the end of the night, I have a very detailed process for decontamination to protect my loved ones. It starts in the hallway, where I remove all my equipment and boots. I decontaminate everything with bleach and alcohol wipes. I spray my work jacket with 100% alcohol. I remove my uniform, and I put it immediately in the washing machine.
I pay attention to every possible contamination, and I keep everything clean and sanitized. I use a bleach-based cleaner to disinfect boots and equipment. And I use 75% alcohol for my hands and clothing. One crucial trick I use is to imagine that I am a symptom-free carrier of the virus. Then, I behave according to that imaginary scenario. That way, I always think, "How do I prevent others from getting what I have?" As a result, my behaviors become very conscientious. For example, I always remember to wear a mask if I will be in proximity to anyone.
He makes sure people are social distancing on the streets, whether he's working or not
I keep hoping New Yorkers will listen to the request of the health officials. But despite this and all the news and the shelter-in-place orders, I still see people who won't take this seriously. The other day I was walking through the East Village. I saw a group of about eight young men. They were in the tight-knit group on 11th street near Avenue A. They were laughing and playing music. I went over to them and told them about people's parents I was seeing die every day. Right away, they became remorseful. I told them they could carry the virus to their family members and not even know it, then they would have to go to a loved one's funeral, knowing it was their fault. They all promised to be more careful. I gave them a pack of surgical masks to share amongst themselves.
He believes coronavirus could have been handled earlier
Governor Cuomo and Mayor DeBlasio seem to be doing the best they can. The federal government botched this entire situation. There was more than enough advance notice. Testing protocols should've been in place as far back as January. We should have learned from the Chinese. We could have taken active measures instead of hoping it would all go away. There is no question that the current administration has blood on its hands. I have held in my hands people who did not have to die. They died because of our federal government's miserable performance.
We can get through this with preventative measures and mindfulness
Don't stress or worry about things that are outside of your control. Focus all your energy on the things that you can control. For example, maintain cleanliness and order at home. Look for ways to improve your safety measures, like hand-washing and social distancing. Develop skills or knowledge that you didn't have time for before getting quarantined. By focusing your energy on the things that are under your control, you will be less stressed. You will feel like your own anchor in an ocean of uncertainty.
