It is his third city working on the front lines during the COVID-19 pandemic, as Arizona presents a new location, but a similar challenge.
Ronnie Rodriguez, a travel nurse, previously worked during the pandemic in hospitals in New York and Florida. She came to Arizona and started working at a Valley hospital several weeks ago.
“We are overwhelmed,” said Rodriguez. “Our [emergency rooms] they are at most; they are opening units that are not normally in use. “
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Rodriguez told ABC15 that the scene at Valley Hospital is very familiar.
“It is as busy as anywhere,” she said. “I don’t think it’s as chaotic as New York, but, like, compared to South Florida it’s very similar.
In dealing with some COVID-19 patients who are able to speak, Rodriguez said that some have similar stories that date back to Thanksgiving meetings.
“They are like ‘we stayed together’ and some family member may be asymptomatic and have no symptoms, so everyone thought they were fine and then, after the holiday, someone tested positive and all the other family members came down “, she said.
Rodriguez also said that it is not just what she sees on the front lines, but what she hears.
“In most hospitals, it is ‘blue code’,” said Rodriguez. “So if you hear ‘blue code’, it’s probably someone who stopped breathing somewhere. Before COVID-19, you could hear it once in a while, you know, once a day. But now it’s eight, ten, twelve times per shift. That’s a lot. “
Rodriguez also shared that COVID-19 is affecting her not only professionally, but personally, as her parents are in the hospital fighting the virus in Florida. She said that her father is still in the ICU.
“Non-stop, whether I’m at work or at home here in Arizona, I still have to worry about COVID-19,” she said. “It is difficult when it is … members of your own family. [another] difficulty level. “
However, she is determined to help combat the rise in Arizona.
“Nursing is a vocation,” said Rodriguez. “That’s what I’m here for. I have to do it. I have to help.”