A photograph that moved the world during the pandemic has drawn attention again: it shows Dr. Joseph Varon embracing an elderly man with COVID-19 inside an ICU, completely covered in his protective gear. But behind that image was a reason much more painful than it seems. 🥺❤️
It was Thanksgiving Day, and Varon had been working 252 consecutive days when he found the patient out of bed, crying and trying to leave the room. When he asked what was wrong, the man only replied that he wanted to be with his wife. The doctor then approached him and hugged him. 🤍🫂
The scene was captured by photographer Go Nakamura and quickly made its way around the world. Varon later said that he, too, felt sad, and that many older patients suffered especially from loneliness inside those rooms, surrounded by people in suits that kept them from seeing the faces of those caring for them. 🥹