Covid-19 taking ‘emotional toll’ on frontline staff, says ex-Rose of Tralee

Former Rose of Tralee Dr Elysha Brennan has spoken of the toll that Covid-19 has taken on medical staff who have contracted the virus.

Dr Brennan (27), who graduated top of her class from the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI) last year, had hoped to start her paediatric training in Galway in July.

Instead, she is helping to treat healthcare staff who have tested positive for Covid-19. Almost 7,500 healthcare workers have contracted the Covid-19 virus, amounting to almost 30 per cent of all cases in the State.

“There is a huge prevalence of anxiety and low moods among frontline staff. I found it quite tough offering support and reassurance. They are really struggling with their mental health and self-isolation. They are worried about family members. They are worried about infections,” she says.

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“A lot of people are being redeployed out of their normal jobs. No one is having an easy go of it in the hospitals. There is an emotional toll of dealing with patients that are so unwell, coming into work and not knowing what you are facing.”

When I am out and I see people congregating in groups, I get so worried because I am in that high-risk group

Dr Brennan was working on the wards when the pandemic began but was moved off frontline medical services on the advice of other doctors. In 2012 she was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma just before her Leaving Certificate. She got into medical school after successful treatment.

In October 2016 she was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis, a debilitating condition which led to her hospitalisation for 10 days and for a further 2½ weeks in February 2017.

Medical textbooks

The cumulative effect of chemotherapy she received having been diagnosed with the cancer was a factor in her developing colitis. She came through that too, often bringing her medical textbooks to her hospital bed.

She is currently receiving the autoimmune suppressant drug Vedolizumab, and her fellow doctors said it was too risky for her to remain on the frontline. The drug is keeping her well, but as a cancer survivor she is in a high-risk category.

“I have been quite anxious going to the shop. When I am out and I see people congregating in groups, I get so worried because I am in that high-risk group and vulnerable.”

Dr Brennan is now doing diagnostic work and running lab tests in a large Dublin hospital, talking remotely to healthcare workers who test positive. She asked that the hospital not be named to protect the staff but notes their experiences are being replicated in tertiary hospitals around the country.

The 2015 Rose of Tralee was one of 300 medical students to graduate from the RCSI last May. In the time-honoured tradition, the top student was revealed in front of the class gathered in the foyer of the college.

Speech

She was cheered by her colleagues and later invited to give the valedictorian speech in which she told her former classmates: “As the next generation of doctors, we go our separate ways after today and venture out into the world. This is my prayer for our future: may we use our minds to challenge the boundaries of modern medicine and be at the frontier of cutting-edge research.”

It has impacted all different aspects of our lives. Many of us haven't seen our families in weeks

On graduating, Dr Brennan said she wished to specialise in paediatrics. She successfully applied for a position in University Hospital Galway (UHG) in February and was due to start in July.

"Everything is up in the air. You can't plan next week. Nobody can anticipate what way the hospital systems will be in Ireland during the summer," she says.

“Myself, and my colleagues who are at the same grade as me, never did we anticipate that we would be finishing off our intern year in the middle of a global pandemic.

“It has obstructed and impacted all different aspects of our lives. Many of us haven’t seen our families in weeks and weeks. I know the situation is the same for people around Ireland but I suppose, for a lot of us, we have had to move out of home for fear of infecting other people.”

In her own case, she lived with three other doctors and she moved out to reduce the risk of cross-infection. She could not go back to live with her mother as her mother is in a vulnerable category so she moved in with her boyfriend in Skerries.

“It has been really tough on myself and my friends. While you are in it, you are in that flight or fight mode getting through it. When all this does pass, we are all going to come out of it a little bruised and reflecting on what has happened.”