How an ER nurse and his wife are coping on the front lines of coronavirus fight
Taken from NJ.com
By Joshua Rosario | The Jersey Journal
April 2, 2020
After a long 12-hour shift in the emergency room at Christ Hospital, Glenn Levine returns to his Hoboken condo unable to share a simple kiss with his wife.
Glenn, 51, a nurse at the Jersey City hospital, said after treating COVID-19 patients all day he fears the possibility of bringing it home to his wife, Tracey.
He even wears a mask while he is home.
“As scared as I am, I am even more worried of bringing it home to her,” Glenn said. “My wife and I are very affectionate. Even though we live in the same apartment right now, we miss each other a lot … I need to do whatever I can to minimize the risk to her.”
It’s a fine line the Levines must walk every day, one that’s surely present in medical workers’ homes around the country.
It’s been at least three weeks since the couple was able to interact normally, Tracey said.
Glenn said he even considered sleeping in separate beds while he continues to work during the coronavirus pandemic.
“I vetoed that one right away … it’s not going to change,” Tracey, 46, said. “I already kind of feel like a roommate. I don’t want to sleep in separate bedrooms.”
Coronavirus cases continue to mount in New Jersey, where 25,590 people have tested posted and 537 have died as of Thursday. In Hudson County, 2,270 cases have been confirmed with a total of 44 deaths.
“It is very much what I imagine it would be like working in a mass unit on a battlefield somewhere,” Glenn said of the realities of working in an ER. “We are just surrounded by dying people and an invisible enemy.”
Glenn said several staff members at the hospital have fallen ill, including a security guard who died after becoming infected. While he is unaware of how many of his colleagues are infected or are quarantined awaiting results, Glenn said the emergency room is currently understaffed and in need of more personal protective equipment.