Annegret Pachner
Kulmbach, Germany
Operating room nurse
Germany District Governor-elect 2020-21
Kiwanis Club of Kulmbach
Corona. I only knew it from the beverage store.
But with this Corona, or COVID-19, we’re not talking about a drink but about a virus that has brought life all over the world to a standstill.
For me it was Friday, March 13, 2020. It so happens that I'm not superstitious, but I will remember that day forever.
I am 56 years old, and I’ve worked as an operating room nurse for 32 years. For over a year now, I have been in charge of the operating theater in Erfurt, and I supervise the nursing staff working in the operating theater and administering anesthesia.
Our clinic has seven operating theaters and two urological surgery rooms that are busier than ever. The number of operating rooms was reduced relatively quickly, and we only performed emergency operations and operations on tumor patients. Despite the tense situation caused by the virus, it was still relatively easy work.
But now we are working in all the operating rooms again, and it has gotten worse than before. My staff number is reduced daily, partly due to positive COVID-19 tests, partly due to other injuries.
We’re working to the limit, thanklessly.
Wearing mouth and nose protection has become everyday life for us. But wearing FFP 2 and FFP 3, also known as PPE, brings us to the brink. And if we operate on a COVID-19 patient, we have to wear additional special protective clothing. We are not allowed to leave the operating room, so it’s impossible to take a sip or have a bite to eat.
The lack of understanding by many citizens makes me angry and sad at the same time. They think of themselves, not of others.
We can’t change anything about the situation and will have to live with it for a long time.
Whether the vaccine will bring the hoped-for success — nobody can say.
Sticking together and not working against each other, only that takes us somewhere.
Stay healthy and take care of yourselves.