He Tested Negative For COVID. Two Days Later This Doc Was On A Ventilator.

More details emerge about two ER doctors being treated for COVID-19.
Coronaviruses research, conceptual illustration. Vials of blood in a centrifuge being tested for coronavirus infection.
Coronaviruses research, conceptual illustration. Vials of blood in a centrifuge being tested for coronavirus infection.
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Two doctors, one in his forties and the other with decades of experience fighting pandemics, cut down by the novel coronavirus.

As TPM first reported early Sunday morning, the cases mark the first instances of emergency room doctors infected with coronavirus.

Both are experienced physicians, and both went from health to being in critical condition — a life or death state — in a matter of days.

They are on opposite sides of the country — one in Paterson, New Jersey and the other in the outbreak’s swelling epicenter in Washington state, the city of Kirkland.

The Washington ER doctor was admitted Friday morning to EvergreenHealth hospital, which has borne the brunt of new cases since they began to appear in the area last month.

That came after the physician — in his 40s with a family — showed up at the ER unit Tuesday evening with mild symptoms, the Seattle Times reported. The doctor was given a test on Tuesday that came back negative, and was sent home.

But over the next several days, what had first seemed to be mild symptoms progressed into a far more serious case, requiring immediate hospitalization.

The doctor returned on Friday morning, and was admitted to the hospital. He is now being treated by his colleagues and tested positive for the novel coronavirus on Saturday evening. He is in critical condition, in isolation and on a ventilator.

The Paterson, New Jersey doctor — James Pruden — was the head of his hospital’s emergency preparedness department.

Pruden agreed to be identified “to encourage others to come forward and get tested,” Kevin Slavin, CEO of St. Joseph’s Health — the hospital where Pruden works — said in a statement.

Pruden was first admitted on March 6, reportedly after coming down with “cold-like symptoms.”

This pandemic wasn’t Pruden’s first brush with mass illness. He reportedly helped lead the hospital’s response to the 2009 swine flu outbreak, and managed preparations during the 2014 Ebola scare.

The doctor was giving interviews to local media outlets up until his hospitalization.

“Our clinical teams are well-trained to use all of the tools and techniques available to effectively manage potential cases,” Pruden said in a story published on the day of his hospitalization.

Notable Replies

  1. Okay…I meant to sign off…but can’t help checking back in…only to find this VERY sobering report.

    I feel like we are living out a dooms day movie plot.

  2. This points out another, less covered issue: The current Test for COVID-19 is not reliable the way it is currently being used.

    I have read some places it is as much as 50% false negatives if not administered (and evaluated) properly, and with the lack of instructions and overwhelmed health providers issue, this is a big, BIG problem.

  3. But, but, but, it’s a Democrat hoax…

  4. We shouldn’t be surprised. These doctors are at the pointy end of the spear.

    I am somewhat sobered by the negative test. Clearly the current tests are not all that reliable.

  5. What about the WHO test? Is that more accurate?

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