In the midst of the COVID-19 outbreak, nurses and frontline workers have played essential roles in fighting against the virus. This prompted social media users in Rwanda to express gratitude to front-line workers in different ways including mass applause via short videos and creating hashtags to thank them. Working in COVID-19 treatment centres and attending to patients is certainly a risky and demanding job. How do frontline medics protect themselves and their families? How are their experience in battling the highly contagious virus? The New Times visited Dr. David Turatsinze and Dr. Menelas Nkeshimana at Camp Kigali testing centre. They shared their personal stories and experiences. Dr. Turatsinze has been in the health sector for 15 years. Since the pandemic broke out, he has been living in a hotel away from his family. “Of course I miss my family. I miss going out with them,” he said. Dr David Turatsinze, one of the frontline workers. / Courtesy He attends to more than 10 patients every day since March 14 when the first case was confirmed. Asked if he ever fears that he would catch the virus, he replied: “Yes, sometimes. I am a human after all but I am also a medical doctor. I know how to protect myself and others.” According to Dr. Turatsinze, a number of medical workers have caught the virus from patients. Therefore, they have to be supremely careful with daily clinical operations. “We wear protective gears before interacting with patients. I personally remove my clothes before entering my home to minimize the risk,” he explained. He isolates himself from friends, families and avoids public places for bilateral safety. “Our job is highly demanding and requires certain sacrifices but at the end of the day, saving lives and keeping the country safe is worth it,” he said. For Dr. Nkeshimana, he never doubted joining frontline workers when COVID-19 began. Although he has experience with other pandemics such as Ebola and SARS that broke out 2002 claiming hundreds of lives, he finds COVID-19 more intense. “What is special about the coronavirus is that it was sudden. It is highly contagious and its precautionary measures are hard to keep up with,” he explains. Dr. Nkeshimana’s life has become an isolation. He lives in Kigali but the first thing he misses is a lively Kigali. “My friends and family know I am a frontline worker and understand the need to avoid unnecessary contact with me. From my casual life, I miss Kigali with people, concerts and crowds,” he recounts. Collaboration will end the pandemic Both the doctors cannot confirm if COVID-19 will entirely end but they assure that collaboration between the public and all concerned institutions will stop the spread. “COVID-19 is still new for scientists. There are things we still haven’t found out about it which means that the pandemic will probably not vanish. However, for our work to matter and have impact, collaboration in observing precautionary measures is highly needed,” Turatsinze said.
