MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Two nurses in West Virginia have died in recent days due to COVID-19 complications.
WVU Medicine and the governor’s office confirmed the deaths Wednesday.
Jeanette Parker, 48, of Rivesville, was a veteran nurse from the MRI unit at Ruby Memorial Hospital for the last 23 years, prior to that she worked for three years at CAMC. The second is an unidentified nurse who had worked for the last 10 years at Mildred Mitchell-Bateman Hospital in the Huntington area.
WVU Medicine President and CEO Albert Wright said Parker’s death was an unwelcome reminder that COVID-19 is continue to have a major impact.
“Our collective hope is that one day soon we can resume our daily lives and put all of this behind us,” Wright said. “Unfortunately, we just aren’t there yet, and regrettably, the loss of someone who was so cherished as “Nettie” reminds us that we still have some tough days ahead.”
Secretary of the West Virginia DHHR, Bill Crouch said the death of the nurse at Mildred Mitchell-Bateman is a loss for the facility.
“This employee worked at Mildred Mitchell-Bateman Hospital for over 10 years,” Crouch said. “She received many accolades for the outstanding work she did at Bateman.”
Gov. Jim Justice addressed the deaths during the Wednesday daily briefing.
“We should continue to remember all of these first line responders, these are the real heroes. Now we have lost two nurses within our state,” Justice said.
West Virginia Nurses Association Executive Director Julie Huron said her organization’s members are concerned about having enough Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and the needless spread of the virus because guidelines aren’t followed regularly.
“Everyone is back to work and people are getting sick and a nurse has died and I’ve heard a second nurse has died too,” Huron said. “We’re at a different spot right now in this time period in West Virginia.”
Huron said nurses are very concerned when they others not following the guidelines, because they are trained how easily the virus is spread.
“Follow the guidelines, wear masks and reduce your exposure,” Huron said. “We see it now it’s hitting the healthcare workers.”
After returning home from work, many nurses quarantine, giving them few outlets to deal with the heavy mental load brought on by the pandemic. That’s why Huron says they encourage nurses to take care of each other.
“A wingman, accountability partner, a nurse someone you can talk to, to check in with to make sure your emotional and mental health is staying strong,” she said.