A HERO surgeon has written to her babies that “if they lose me to Covid-19, I want them to know Mommy tried really hard to do her job”.
Dr Cornelia Griggs, a pediatric surgery fellow in New York, shared her heart-rending fears on Twitter while battling on the frontline against coronavirus without proper protective equipment.
New York City, the epicenter of the US outbreak, reported on Sunday that its toll had risen to nearly 800.
And a Navy hospital ship, the USNS Comfort, has arrived in NYC to help relieve the coronavirus crisis gripping its hospitals.
On Twitter though, Dr Cornelia Griggs has been commenting on the horrendous conditions she and other medics are facing while tackling the killer bug.
She describes herself in her Twitter bio as a “Surgeon. Mommy. Wanderer. Pushy girl. Pediatric Surgery fellow in NYC”.
Dr Griggs said on Twitter yesterday: “My babies are too young to read this now.
"And they’d barely recognize me in my gear.
"But if they lose me to COVID I want them to know Mommy tried really hard to do her job. #GetMePPE #NYC."
Her poignant – and honest – tweet has been retweeted about 110,000 times already, and received more than 560,000 likes.
She received thousands of replies, including from Robin Young, who tweeted: “Cornelia, we don’t know one another, but I want to thank you for all you do to save people’s lives. I love you… and I’ll be praying for you.”
Chris Casey urged: “Stay well, please!
"Your loving dedication can never be adequately thanked & will never be forgotten.
"The legacies of yourself & your colleagues, worldwide, will endure throughout history to come… accept all our gratitude.”
She and fellow doctors, as well as nurses in emergency wards, have taken to social media to publicize their hazardous working conditions as they continue to face a shortage of personal protection equipment, and other essential supplies.
The pediatric surgeon had previously written: “I say this not to panic anyone but to mobilize you.
"We need more equipment and we need it now.”
After receiving so much support from people via Twitter, she followed up with this message today: “Thank you to everyone sending support.
“My heroes: Pam & Nana watching my kids, Victor who cleans the office, Jen at the coffee shop, nurses, social workers & ALL of you holding the line at home.
“'The only way to fight the plague is with decency' – Camus."
Judith April replied: “You're doing a very good thing… May God keep you safe for us okay… you're a good person.”
William Cornelius added: “Thanks & Prayers for all your efforts and those of your colleagues!"
New York's governor Andrew Cuomo has today put out an urgent plea for medical volunteers to “please come help us in New York now. We need relief.”
Cuomo said on Sunday that more than 76,000 health professionals, including many who’ve recently retired from the field, have volunteered to help in the coronavirus fight.
He said yesterday: "Our main strategy to slow the spread of this virus has been to increase testing and reduce density in every community across the state."
New York City Mayor, Bill De Blasio, said he has asked the federal government to deliver 400 more ventilators to city hospitals by Wednesday.
He has warned that without reinforcements the city will run out of masks, gowns and other hospital supplies in a week.
The city’s ambulances are responding to about 6,000 calls a day — over 50 per cent more than average.
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