Patient tells of panic at quarantine of hotel when swine flu arrived
'I had nightmares and insomnia almost every night, and would cry for no reason.'
That is how Ms Lau, a nurse at United Christian Hospital and a Sars survivor, recalls the days following her discharge from the hospital.
She fell prey to Sars in April 2003 when she was working in the hospital's medical ward and spent almost a month in isolation, cut off from her family and friends.
'It was a painful experience. I was lonely and had no help,' she said.
Ms Lau finally recovered, but she suffered from bone necrosis. Her legs are weaker than before and she can no longer carry heavy things.
She feels frustrated when she has to call for help to move patients around the hospital.
When swine flu arrived this year, she was afraid that it might be another Sars outbreak. 'When I saw that Metropark Hotel quarantined and people in full protective gear going in to disinfect it, I was stunned and had to turn off the TV,' she said. 'This was so similar to what happened during Sars.'
She also refrained from listening to the daily updates of the tally of patients, which also reminded her of the 2003 experience.
She said her condition improved a lot after she consulted psychiatrists. She was now able to talk about the Sars experience, and had no problem working at the outpatient clinic.
Mak Wing-chit, a psychiatrist in the hospital's psychiatry department, said patients who experienced trauma could be treated by psychiatrists, clinical psychologists and trained nurses. The key was to let them know there were other positive aspects of life, such as family. 'We encourage them by saying 'what doesn't kill you makes you stronger',' he said.
Relatives of patients should encourage them to talk about their feelings, instead of asking them 'not to think too much', as patients could not control nightmares and flashbacks. 'Patients would think that you do not understand them,' Dr Mak said.
