Alex Harding

The Patient As the patient rolls down the hall in her hospital bed, thankful to be getting out of this place alive, there are many things she can’t bring herself to think about now. Spending 30 or so days in the hospital, mostly in the intensive care unit on a ventilator, will do that to a person. Maybe someday later...Read More

Halfway through an explanation to a patient I am treating for a suspected case of COVID-19, I realize I don’t know the Spanish term for “sanitizing wipes.” I’m in my new clinical home base, where Massachusetts General Hospital has cordoned off special care for COVID-19 patients. There are modular plastic walls and bright fluorescent lights. A few weeks ago, this...Read More

Eleven days ago I wrote an article for Timmerman Report on my initial emotions as a doctor on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic: fear, frustration, and confusion. Today, I’d like to add another emotion to that list. Gratitude. Above all, I am grateful that I can do something to help. My impact is small—miniscule in fact. I’m working...Read More

The Massachusetts General Hospital COVID-19 Surge Clinic is a converted parking garage normally used as the ambulance bay for the Emergency Department. It is isolated from the rest of the ED by two sets of sliding glass doors and can only be accessed by badge. The garage has blue fluorescent lights and no windows, making it impossible to tell day...Read More