‘What I never expected was to be fighting on the front lines of a global pandemic’

Jennifer Oostra is an intensive care unit nurse at Aurora Medical Center in Oshkosh, WI. If her name sounds familiar, it could be that 10 months ago, she was celebrating the discharge of the hospital’s first COVID-19 patient after a 17-day stay in the ICU, intubated and on a ventilator.

That celebration was unfortunately short-lived. Thankfully, her compassionate strength and determination are not.

“The number of COVID-19 patients we had in the spring is minuscule compared to what we are experiencing now,” Oostra says. “With visitor restrictions still in place, we are the ones holding the hands of patients as they take their final breath, and then having to proceed to the next room and put on a brave face for the ones that are still fighting. We continue to stay calm amidst the chaos and hold faith over fear.”

Surely it has been a year of many hardships for all, but there is one thing that hasn’t changed: The ICU team’s cohesiveness, unification and commitment to caring for its community’s sickest patients and one another.

“As nurses, we are tired. Both physically and emotionally exhausted,” Oostra says. “We feel helpless and defeated. Many nurses have dedicated to picking up extra shifts every week to make sure our patients are getting the care they deserve. These last couple months have been stressful, and without the teamwork and comradery, I’m not sure we would have survived thus far.”

Oostra stands arm-in-arm strongly with her fellow frontline workers, urging the public to hear them and heed what they have to say.

“It saddens me to think that what used to be a well-respected profession, is now having our pleas for help be ignored by many,” Oostra says. “We are continuing to show up for you, and all we ask in return is to please wash your hands, maintain social distancing and wear a mask in public. We are all in this together.”

As far as the COVID-19 vaccine is concerned, Oostra recognizes that it is up to each person to make that decision for themselves, when the opportunity presents itself. She encourages people to educate themselves: “Do the research, weigh the pros and cons, speak with your doctor if you have questions.”

But as for herself, “I got it for my family so that someday we can hug each other again; for my friends because I miss them dearly; for my patients because they are the ones that have suffered the most; for my community because we are all tired of the masks and restrictions; for myself to have peace of mind knowing I did everything possible to help stop the spread of this virus.”

She asks people to ponder this powerful quote by Dr. Brian Joseph M. Calinawagan:

“We, the health care workers, are not your frontlines any longer. We are your last line of defense. You, my fellow people, are the frontlines now. The war has shifted to the community, and it is up to you.”