Many Â鶹´«Ã½ alumni in health-related fields are responding to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
Zack Haberman '10 shares his story:
“I am an emergency room doctor and clinical faculty (I teach resident physicians) at St. Joseph’s Medical Center in Stockton, California. My ER serves a diverse community, including a large elderly and socioeconomically underserved population. I am seeing the number of COVID patients continue to grow.
“While I can draw on what I’ve learned from basic science at Pomona, medical school and residency, the scariest part of the virus is how much is unknown. In many ways, I am used to that—my job is to see patients with an unknown illness or problem and make life-or-death decisions based on incomplete information. However, the more I see and read about the virus, it doesn’t seem to respond in the same way that other serious heart and lung emergencies do. Because of that, we still don’t know the best way to treat patients—especially the sickest ones. And unlike most emergencies, it is putting myself, my co-workers and our families at risk. I’ve already had to take care of my colleagues who have fallen ill from COVID, and I get a pit in my stomach knowing that there will be more to come.
“The medical ramifications we all see every day in the news—how many infected, how many hospitalized, how many deaths. But also important are the social and economic ramifications. We have so many patients in the community who are working paycheck to paycheck. The ones who still have their jobs and also have symptoms of the virus are facing a catch-22—how do they balance going to work and supporting their family with potentially infecting others and spreading the virus? Just as vital, how do we as a society balance the safety of our hospital population and community with our humanity? Should we ban visitors or family from seeing people who are hospitalized or even dying?
“Emergency medicine requires being calm under stress, a ton of teamwork, flexibility and finding creative solutions. Pomona’s multidisciplinary education has been such an important base for my life as a doctor. We have to take concepts, apply what we know, learn from what we are seeing in China, Italy, New York, and figure out a way to slow the virus, flatten the curve and support the most vulnerable in the community. I feel very fortunate that the country has really come together and is showing so much support for the medical community. Overall, showing up to work is a bright spot in my day, even if it can make my heart ache. I get to work together with my friends and colleagues. Plus, it’s the one place we can be within 6 feet of each other.
“Stay safe! Hoping Pomona can reschedule that 10-year reunion so we can see each other in person when this improves.â€