NY Doc Who Survived Ebola: This Is Why I Fear COVID-19

Craig Spencer, the Columbia University Medical Center ER doctor who survived Ebola in 2014, has a very clear message for anyone who's listening -- he fears COVID-19, and the situation is getting worse.

Spencer became an Internet sensation Monday after tweeting about a 13-hour ER shift where 90 percent of his patients had the coronavirus disease.

So he took to the Internet again in the wee hours of Tuesday morning to update on just how much worse the situation was.

You take signout from the previous team, but nearly every patient is the same, young & old:

Cough, shortness of breath, fever.

They are really worried about one patient. Very short of breath, on the maximum amount of oxygen we can give, but still breathing fast.
— Craig Spencer MD MPH (@Craig_A_Spencer) March 24, 2020

You're notified of another really sick patient coming in. You rush over. They're also extremely sick, vomiting. They need to be put on life support as well. You bring them back. Two patients, in rooms right next to each other, both getting a breathing tube. It's not even 10am yet
— Craig Spencer MD MPH (@Craig_A_Spencer) March 24, 2020

Sometime in the afternoon you recognize you haven't drank any water. You're afraid to take off the mask. It's the only thing that protects you. Surely you can last a little longer - in West Africa during Ebola, you spent hours in a hot suit without water. One more patient...
— Craig Spencer MD MPH (@Craig_A_Spencer) March 24, 2020

Nearly everyone you see today is the same. We assume everyone is #COVIDー19. We wear gowns, goggles, and masks at every encounter. All day. It's the only way to be safe. Where did all the heart attacks and appendicitis patients go? Its all COVID.
— Craig Spencer MD MPH (@Craig_A_Spencer) March 24, 2020

Before you leave, you wipe EVERYTHING down. Your phone. Your badge. Your wallet. Your coffee mug. All of it. Drown it in bleach. Everything in a bag. Take no chances.

Sure you got it all??? Wipe is down again. Can't be too careful.
— Craig Spencer MD MPH (@Craig_A_Spencer) March 24, 2020

You get home. You strip in the hallway (it's ok, your neighbors know what you do). Everything in a bag. Your wife tries to keep your toddler away, but she hasn't seen you in days, so it's really hard. Run to the shower. Rinse it all away. Never happier. Time for family.
— Craig Spencer MD MPH (@Craig_A_Spencer) March 24, 2020

Everyone we see today was infected a week ago, or more. The numbers will undoubtedly skyrocket overnight, as they have every night the past few days. More will come to the ER. More will be stat notifications. More will be put on a ventilator.
— Craig Spencer MD MPH (@Craig_A_Spencer) March 24, 2020

You might hear people saying it isn't real. It is.

You might hear people saying it isn't bad. It is.

You might hear people saying it can't take you down. It can.

I survived Ebola. I fear #COVIDー19.

Do your part. Stay home. Stay safe.

And every day I'll come to work for you
— Craig Spencer MD MPH (@Craig_A_Spencer) March 24, 2020

(You can also read Spencer's full Twitter thread here.)

New York City recorded its first case of COVID-19 on March 1. As of the evening of March 23, the city had more than 13,000 confirmed cases and 125 deaths.

The city now represents roughly 30% of all infections nationwide, and 1% of the global death toll since the virus's outbreak last year.