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It is its third city to work on the front line during the COVID-19 pandemic, as Arizona presents a new location but a similar challenge.
Travel nurse Ronnie Rodriguez worked during the pandemic at hospitals in New York and Florida. She came to Arizona and started working at a Valley hospital several weeks ago.
“We are overwhelmed,” Rodriguez said. “Our [emergency rooms] are maximized; they open units that are not normally used. “
RELATED: Arizona COVID-19 Vaccination Efforts
Rodriguez told ABC15 that the scene at Valley hospital was all too familiar.
“It’s as busy as anywhere else,” she says. “I don’t think it’s as chaotic as New York, but compared to South Florida it’s very similar. I feel like it’s a bit more structured here, so it’s really a difference.”
When dealing with some COVID-19 patients who are able to speak, Rodriguez said some had similar stories dating back to Thanksgiving meetings.
“They’re like ‘we got together,’ and maybe a family member was asymptomatic, and they had no symptoms, so everyone thought everything was fine and after the holidays someone was tested positive and everyone else in the family came down, ”she said.
Rodriguez also said it’s not just what she sees on the frontlines, but what she hears.
“Most hospitals are ‘code blue’,” Rodriguez said. “So if you hear ‘code blue,’ it’s probably someone who has stopped breathing somewhere. Before COVID-19, you might hear it from time to time, you know once a day. But now it’s eight, ten, twelve times a shift. It’s a lot.”
Rodriguez also shared that COVID-19 was affecting him not only professionally, but personally, as both of his parents are in hospital battling the virus in Florida. She said her father was still in intensive care.
“24 hours a day, if I’m at work or at home here in Arizona, I still have to worry about COVID-19,” she said. “It’s hard when it’s… your own family. [another] difficulty level. “
However, she is determined to help fight the outbreak in Arizona.
“Nursing is a calling,” Rodriguez said. “That’s what I’m here to do. I have to do it. I have to help.”
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