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COVID-19 Recovery: Jeff Sweat Sings for his Voice
You may remember that back in February of 2021, we did two posts on Jeff Sweat, a writer in Los Angeles who, although his entire family caught COVID, was the only one to be hospitalized. Jeff was healthy with no underlying medical conditions at the time but he spent 28 days in the ICU. Jeff was intubated and had a tracheotomy, where an opening is placed in the neck for an airway. These procedures, along with the harm that COVID did to his body, gave Jeff great difficulty with his voice when he was released from the hospital.
Jeff Sweat's COVID-19 Journey: An Update
As you may know, all of us at Musa Masala have been following the journey of author, Jeff Sweat, as he's battled severe COVID-19 and its aftereffects. We are so happy that Jeff is now back home and improving every day.
Jeff's first-person story is so well told, as were tellings by his wife, Sunny, who stood in when Jeff wasn't yet conscious. Through a writer's view, he's giving us such a tangible, vivid feel for what he and his family have been going through.
Battling COVID-19 in a Hospital: Author Jeff Sweat's Story
Jeff Sweat is a Los Angeles-based writer and author with a rich background in journalism and marketing. He’s also funny—very funny—and a loving father, partner, and friend to many. Until a few weeks ago, he was also healthy and active, as well as caring enough to take recommended precautions to avoid catching or spreading the COVID-19 virus.
As he wrote in a Facebook post on January 31st, he and his family had been “insanely careful,” venturing only to two stores and consistently wearing a mask around non-family members before his COVID symptoms appeared.
Nepal and COVID-19: Food Distribution with Wongchhu Peak Promotion
Unlike the worsening situation in the United States, Nepal has taken a different approach to COVID-19. The central government put a total lockdown of the country in place on March 24th. Although it resulted in the closing of the spring climbing and trekking season and caused terrible economic damage to the population, Nepal was able, with physical distancing and the wearing of masks, to keep the number of infections down in the country. As of July 26, there are 18,483 confirmed cases, and sadly, 44 deaths.
A Nurse's View: Life in the ER During COVID-19
Travel nurse Linda Andrus is back on a plane on her way to the East Coast to work in another ER dealing with COVID-19. She graciously took some of her only free time to write down about her experiences at the outset of the virus in California. Linda has a written a stunning piece on what it was like in the first few weeks as her workplace came to grips with COVID-19. This is personal and tough read.
Staying Safe and Sane: COVID-19 Tips from Dr. Paul Auerbach
The COVID -19 pandemic has changed our lives so quickly. We want to be able to provide help as we all navigate this crisis. As we continue to provide updates from our members working in hospitals, we came across an article on The Doctor Weighs In by our friend Dr. Paul Auerbach that does a great service by providing important information, additional resources and useful tips on getting through this together.Paul is on the planning committee for the Wongchhu Sherpa Memorial Hospital and a founding member of the Wilderness Medical Society. He's also the author of numerous books, including Enviromedics: The Impact of Climate Change on Human Health,Auerbach's Wilderness Medicine and Field Guide to Wilderness Medicine.
COVID-19: Report from the Frontlines
Musa Masala began with the idea of a group of medical professionals getting together with a group of climbing and trekking guides to make educational materials to help people stay safe in the outdoors. Today with COVID-19 infecting people around the world we seem to be in the middle of it. Our guides are all out of work with the closure of the spring climbing and trekking season in Nepal and our medical crew find themselves staring into the unknown with a tsunami of illness coming their way. We will be sharing with you our eyewitness stories from our members who are now doing everything they can to protect the public, while trying not to infect themselves, their families and loved ones. It is exhausting and it is scary. Tatiana Havryliuk is an emergency physician in NYC and one of the founders of Musa Masala.