Leasa Taylor

“We’re a hospital, and we also have a primary care facility and a specialty group. We serve all aspects of the community.

“We haven’t had any COVID-positive patients yet at my facility, but we are taking extra precautions with our patients. As far as anybody that has a compromised health condition, we cancel their appointments because I’m in a specialty clinic for surgeons, so if it’s not a dire needed appointment, we cancel it and schedule them at a later date. Hopefully we won’t have to keep rescheduling them. Hopefully this dies down soon.

“It’s just a matter of days before we have any positives. It’s coming.

“We wear masks to protect ourselves. We keep a regular count of PPE we have available so that we know we have enough if needed. There are people throughout the hospital that we couldn’t survive without, such as environmental services and the kitchen staff. They keep us fed.

“Visitors are told they have to remain in their vehicles. They can’t come in. We’re not allowing anyone to come in with patients.

“That can be really scary. For instance, my nephew was just hospitalized at our facility for a traumatic brain injury. He had some health complications and had to be at the hospital, but he could have no visitors. His mom is immune compromised. Even if we would have allowed it, his mom could not have come into the hospital. He was here for four days and he couldn’t have anyone with him. He’s finally back home. There’s just a lot of precautions in place just to keep everyone safe.

“When I get off work, as soon as I get home, I don’t greet my family at all until I have taken off my scrubs and showered, even my shoes go in the dryer and my purse, since it’s vinyl, it gets wiped down before it touches anything in the house.

“[I worry for my family] only because of the potential I have of bringing anything to them. My mom’s having a difficult time. She’s not that old but she is health compromised. She’s only 67, but she’s not quite understanding ‘stay home.’ She said, ‘We can still get together for Easter,’ and I said, ‘No, we’re not! You will not see me until this is over. I’m not coming over. I’m not going to expose you to anything I have been exposed to at the hospital all day.’

“Just like everything, this too shall pass. It’s going to pass faster if everyone will learn to stay at home. The virus doesn’t move; people move the virus.”

Leasa Taylor
Registered Medical Assistant
Mount Olive, Illinois