Doctor Tran Thanh Linh from the centre's Intensive Care Unit said that the hospital has treated 260 Covid-19 patients who are in critical condition with many of them having to use extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO). He said that each health worker was responsible for the care of three to four patients.
Doctors are working on three shifts a day with morning shift lasting from 7 am to 2 pm, afternoon shift from 2 pm to 9 pm and evening shift from 9 pm to 7 am the next morning.
Doctor Vo Cao Thai said that he usually works in a tense condition in his emergency ward with many sleepless nights.
"It has been a week since I was moved from Cho Ray Hospital here and I haven't had a chance to go out and see how life is outside," Doctor Thai said. "I'm spending most of my time in this emergency ward and only sleeping some 3-4 hours a day. It's hard but we have to try."
The doctors shared that they usually feel much motivated after successfully saving a patient but many times they fail.
"It is very difficult with elderly Covid-19 patients who have several other diseases," doctor Linh said while preparing to inform the family of an 85-year-old patient who just died.
Besides the doctors, many nursing staff are also working hard to provide patient treatment.
A nurse collects rubbish after the patients' condition is brought under control.
Some other nurses take a short rest during their shifts.
Ho Chi Minh City is now the country's biggest Covid-19 hotspot with 43,776 patients confirmed since the latest outbreak started in late April. The city recorded 2,433 new infections in 12 hours from 6 pm on Wednesday to 6 am on Thursday.
At the meeting held on Thursday morning, Ho Chi Minh City's Diseases Control, said that the city has not yet reached its peak of the pandemic and the number of patients may continue to rise in the coming days.
At present, the city is classifying Covid-19 patients into four groups for treatment. The first group are people who test positive for SARS-CoV-2 through quick tests. They will be quarantined at their districts to wait for a RT-PCR test. The second group who are patients with mild symptoms will be treated at district hospitals. The third group are patients who face heavy symptoms and have other diseases and need to be transferred to higher-level hospitals. And the last groups are critical patients who need intensive care.
