(KGW) PORTLAND, Oregon — Some Oregon doctors who see patients struggling to survive COVID-19 infection say they’re angry because they feel the suffering [is] preventable because of the vaccine.
“I just finished a week in the intensive care unit and just finished up a week this morning taking care of the sickest of the sick using a special therapy called ECMO,” said Dr. David Zonies, the associate chief medical officer for critical care at Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU).
“For the last several weeks, what we have seen is the only patients who are getting so sick are those who are unvaccinated, meaning those with COVID entering our ICUs primarily are unvaccinated people,” Dr. Zonie said.
Since the vaccine is now so easy to get and there is a statewide surplus, Dr. Zonie believes COVID is preventable. The fact that people are still getting so sick is upsetting, he said.
“I will tell you as a physician, it is very frustrating. It is very disheartening and it's actually creating a fair amount of anger across my colleagues,” he said.
My friend, a primary care physician, expressed his frustration with his patients who refused the vaccine. One, a long-hauler, who contracted COVID in early May and "recovered", but is still suffering the effects, came into get something for his harsh and persistent cough. He is too sick to work.
Another of his patients, a 94 year-old woman, is dying of COVID. She is in hospice care now. Her daughters, avid Trumpers, asked my friend to prescribe Remdesivir for their mother. The refused to allow her to be vaccinated when it might have saved her.
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