Junior doctor says morale is high amid coronavirus outbreak but medics are preparing for what is to come
A junior doctor, who only qualified last year and is now on the front line of the fight against coronavirus, has told ITV News that morale is high but that medics are “anticipating what is going to come”.
Caitlin Peers qualified in 2019 and is already doing shifts in intensive care.
She said there were still many unknowns for doctors.
“We don’t know the numbers of cases, we don’t know how fast they’re going to come in and we don’t know what strain that is going to put on the wards of the hospital at the moment.
“We’ve only been working as doctors for less than a year, for this to occur at that point is quite a big thing and it’s going to take a lot of training, a lot of learning but it will be a very unique experience for us.
“I think amongst anxiousness and a bit of trepidation, people are quite excited to see what we can provide and what duty we can give to make patients better really.”
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Dr Peers is now working in a ward in south Wales.
She said “We’re looking after each other, we’re concentrating quite a lot on well-being.
“We’re making sure that there are things in place for those who find it more difficult.
"Everyone will need support for this, so having a good group of juniors working together is really important.”
She also talked about what she had seen on the front-line and the lessons medics had learnt from the crisis.
She said: “We’ve been seeing cases that are sad cases, and we’ve been seeing people also do well.
“I think we’re realising the importance of keeping each other safe, the importance of the PPE and the equipment, and also the importance of the support from the public.
“Hearing the clap on Thursday was really heart-warming – I think a lot of us were very touched by that and really enthused to go into work the next day.”