Updates from the last 48 hours: (Thread)

12/25: My ER attending physician husband got his first fever of 2020. On Christmas. After avoiding COVID since March. 9 days after his COVID vaccine. I don’t know whether to scream or cry. 1/10

12/26: And...that's a positive rapid COVID PCR for him. The rest of us are pending testing Monday and Tuesday.

We are so thankful we did not gather w/ family or attend Christmas Eve mass because he developed symptoms AFTER he'd have exposed others. 2/10

To be clear, the vaccine didn’t have time to work before he tested positive. This is not a vaccine failure. It is just incredibly unlucky timing. We were hoping our household could make it through unscathed after all we’ve sacrificed and how careful we’ve been. 3/10

He moved out for 3.5 months April-July and we’ve both been vaccinated as we’re both physicians. So close!!! We also did not travel/gather for Thanksgiving. Or eat indoors. Or have a service for my grandma when she passed of COVID 12/14. 4/10

Either we were exposed at work or possibly one of our children at school/preschool. We will be fine—I hope. But I’m so ready for the high risk people to get vaccinated. 5/10

My 8 yo is hyperventilating & hysterical.

She’s afraid her parents are going to die like my grandma, wants to know if she’ll have to move to Cali/Philly and leave all her friends, blaming her brother for giving it to Dad as he had a runny nose and a single fever 9 days ago. 6/10

She even burst into tears tonight for “lying to me.” The “lie”? That she threw her Motrin in the trash last night instead of taking it for her 101.4 fever and now she’s afraid she’s going to die, too. And Ryan’s job wants to know when he’ll be back. 7/10

He is supposed to work 12/27, 1/1, 1/2, 1/3, 1/4, 1/5 and 1/6. He doesn’t have paid vacation days so he’ll have to pay back any missed shifts so of course he wants to return ASAP while I hear him hacking through a closed door. 8/10

He also doesn’t want to dump on his coworkers. Healthcare workers are not okay. We are NOT okay. We get scared just like everyone else. And we’ve seen enough people die to know how unpleasant it is, even in the best of circumstances. 9/10

So, before you gather for New Year’s, Monica’s birthday, chowing down on Mexican food indoors or whatever you may be doing, remember that your actions have consequences and there might not be a doctor left to take care of you if you get sick because WE ARE NOT OKAY. 10/10

Update: Still febrile & hacking. I spent my day trying to enroll him in a trial for monoclonal antibody infusion tomorrow. 66.67% chance he’ll get them vs placebo. He is to return to work in 9 days but I won’t have him coughing in healthy pt’s faces so we’ll see. Now gets PTO.

Just now re: trial
“Good Morning Emily,
I am sorry to say that PYAH is on hold by the sponsor until some time in January. We do have PYAB but you must meet certain conditions. Dr. X said that your husband has no medical hx. Would he by chance have a BMI >35?
I'm so sorry!
Carmen”

So, he wasn’t unhealthy enough/old enough/didn’t weigh enough to qualify under EUA. But these monoclonal abs are only for output use and are sitting around. Trump promised every American could get them. Just not my ER physician husband after 10 mo of working a pandemic. Got it.