When the pandemic struck, our capacity tripled in little more than a week. We went from a 12-bed unit with at most three or four patients to a 36-bed ICU. Soon, we took over the entire floor. Every patient was on a respirator with multiple drips.

I distinctly remember that we were responding to the Code Blues, which alert us to a medical emergency, five or six times in rapid succession per day. Patients were coming upstairs directly from the Emergency Room – and there was no end in sight.

I remember bringing in family members of patients who we knew were going to pass away. They said their goodbyes from the door. Many patients were in their 30s and 40s. One daughter was sobbing, “Daddy, don’t go.” We had three brothers who were intubated at the same time. It was heartbreaking. They weren’t all going to survive.  A husband and wife passed away about two weeks apart.

Even now, it’s difficult to stop my own tears from coming. My sister-in-law was one of the people who survived and walked out of here. I remember the day she “crashed.”  My husband stood outside her window and prayed. When things look the worst, you look to God.

Our leadership made it possible for us to get through. When surgical services and other departments all but shut down, they re-deployed their nurses to us. They sent us travelling nurses who just appeared out of nowhere like a godsend.

I must mention that even during the worst of it, if a person required lifesaving surgery, Phelps moved heaven and earth to make it happen. A woman needed a dangerous blood clot removed, and it was accomplished safely and effectively.

I am so grateful for the wonderful, caring people who work here. Most of us were working up to 18-hour shifts and giving our patients the compassionate care we’d give our own loved ones. But it took a tremendous toll.

I remember sobbing in my car every day. When I got home, I would change outside. The first month after the surge, I wouldn’t hug my nine-year-old son. I was afraid to breathe on him. I told my eldest son “if something happens to mom and dad, this is where all the things are, you’ll be in charge.” My husband also works at Phelps and I recall saying to him in the midst of everything, “You know, it’s been almost 30 years. It’s been a nice ride, but if you and I don’t make it, thanks for everything.” I said, “We can’t die together, because we can’t leave our kids,” and he said, “We’re going to make it… we’re going to make it. Have faith.”

Most of us don’t go into this type of work for the glory. We genuinely care about people. We want with all of our hearts for everyone to get better.

So when donors and hospital friends support us, it feels special because we don’t look for that.  Each and every nurse with whom I work with is here for the good of the people. We’re soldiers. We’re going to keep going.

I am writing to share my experience with you as an Emergency Room doctor these last fourteen months. This has been a challenging year, but the pandemic strengthened our bond in the ER and made us a family within the hospital.

Yes, we shared a fear of imminent danger.

But we all took an oath to care for other people – and that’s what we did, even though early on, we really didn’t know how the virus was transmitted… or how lethal it was.

Together, we dealt with the uncertainties of what that could mean for us.

I must say that the ER staff was incredibly brave. Our doctors and nurses were selfless in fulfilling their mission, which is to help people.

It wasn’t unusual at all for us to hold a patient’s hand to give them gentle reassurance. Our staff embraced their dual role of medical providers and caregivers.  

In the beginning of the pandemic, we would meet a few times a day to give strength and courage to one another. Then something remarkable happened. At the height of the pandemic, our staff team offered to work additional shifts.

One advantage of being part of a large healthcare system is that throughout the crisis, we had access to all of the latest personal protective equipment that we needed.

One result was a very low rate of infection among our staff. This allowed us to continue to care for patients and support one another.

My wife, who is also an ER doctor in the Northwell Health System, and I made a heart-breaking decision early in the pandemic. We sent our children, ages 12 and 13, to other family members to keep them safe. We knew we were going to be putting ourselves in harm’s way. We didn’t want to take a chance of infecting them.

Other ER staff did the same, or some stayed in motels or slept in other parts of their homes, away from their loved ones. Many members of our team made personal sacrifices. Thank goodness, our kids are now back home with us.

It’s now a race between the vaccines and the variants. I’m optimistic. I also think there are a lot of hard work and tough times ahead. The virus hasn’t gone away.

We’ll continue to embrace the challenge and come together to give strength to one another — and to those who trust us with their lives. We’re always here when you need us.

Dr. Barry Geller
Chair, Emergency Department

We have been working together here at Phelps for almost 18 years. We guide and direct all cleaning and disinfecting. During the worst days of the pandemic, our team was truly the first line of defense.

Our staff inspires us to be better leaders. It’s awe-inspiring how they stepped up to deal with the crisis.

Everything was in a state of flux. Safety protocols from the department of health often changed twice a day. It was a challenge to keep up with these changes and communicate that information to 75 employees on three different shifts. We’d have a huddle every morning with the staff and then again in the afternoon when regulations changed.

Our staff, like troopers, didn’t blink an eye – even when they went into COVID-positive patients’ rooms to sanitize. They saw people with COVID-19 who probably weren’t going to make it, and it got to them. Some needed counseling. Still, they did their jobs without question.

Our hospital leadership is always providing guidance and resources. Executive Director Eileen Egan has been here for years and she knows Phelps.

Eileen knows the pulse and she truly cares. We’re all willing to go to the wall for her, because she’s gone to the wall for us.

The hospital gets thank you notes all the time from patients and their families saying how pristine the facilities are, and how important this is to them especially during COVID-19.

Even our stairwells are shiny. When we have inspections from The Joint Commission, which evaluates hospitals, they comment on that. We do it because it’s part of our standard of excellence, and it makes patients feel safe and well cared for.

We constantly tell our staff that they are just as essential to Phelps as the medical staff. Disinfection is a primary part of patient care.

You can feel safe about coming to our immaculate facility. We’ve seen to that.

Mario Pensabene, Director of Environmental Services
Tony Acosta, Assistant Director of Environmental Services

It was all very sudden. We heard on the news that the coronavirus was coming to the U.S. Next, we learned that cases were starting to spring up in our area. We were alerted that the situation would get worse, but we didn’t know how much worse.

Almost overnight, every nurse had several patients on ventilators. This requires constant monitoring and the highest level of critical care. We had to develop protocols to make sure that even under these conditions, every single patient was treated like our most important patient.

When minutes meant lives, we had to do this rapidly. I have to tell you that throughout this crisis, the strength of the unit was our nurses. They were incredible… not only in putting in extra hours doing this work, but also giving hard news to worried and grieving families... over and over again. They took the lead. They balanced heartfelt compassion with professionalism. It was inspirational and moving to witness.

One moment that will be forever engrained in my memory is when we were doing CPR on a patient to try to save him. One of our nurses was right there, on FaceTime with his wife and children as they were saying goodbye to their dad and husband.

During the worst of it, the entire ICU drew strength from the community’s support… the letters… the hand-drawn posters… the food delivered multiples times a day from local restaurants… the fire and police departments driving by in our honor. We were also told about donations that individuals and grateful families made in honor of our unit and team. You never forget instances like this. Never.

Today, the ICU is back to “normal” caring for critically-ill patients and those recovering from complex surgeries. Surgeries that people were putting off are back on schedule. Our Environmental Services team hasn’t slowed down a bit. They keep every corner of every department sanitized and safe from microorganisms, including the COVID-19 virus.

I also want to give a personal message to you and your family. Caring for the sickest of the sick has done what I didn’t think was possible. It made us stronger clinically and even closer than our already close-knit team was before. We’ve been battle tested, and I believe that we – and the whole community – are stronger for it.

Our ICU is as fine as any in the New York area. Our ace teams work in sync across every department to ensure excellent care for our patients. Thank you for your support, both emotional and financial. It’s been said that courage is knowing what not to fear. And with people like you behind us, we don’t have to fear going at it alone.

John DePetrillo, MD
Director, Critical Care Medicine

I hope you have enjoyed reading the stories featured in our Phelps Caregiver Stories series. These are just some of the countless stories that represent the bravery, dedication and heart from our Phelps team members.

To honor their bravery and dedication with a special gift, click here.

Just as our caregivers are important to us, you are so very important to them.

Thank you for being a part of our Phelps Family.

Eileen Egan, RN, JD
Executive Director