Amidst the crashing sound of ambulances, the hurried steps and anxious eyes of patients' families, doctors and nurses still worked hard for many hours to regain life for those who had just been pulled back from the most fragile line between life and death. Following the doctors here, I clearly felt the urgent beat of one of the most stressful places in the hospital.
In more than 20 years of following the medical field, I have had the opportunity to set foot in many hospitals, follow doctors in hours-long surgeries, meet patients who are resilient in crossing the line of life and death, and witness many stories that make journalists feel remorseful.
However, if you have to choose a place that leaves the most emotions in your career journey, it is probably the A9 Emergency Center, Bach Mai Hospital.
Among the many times working at the A9 Emergency Center, the memory that I remember most is New Year's Eve. I and my colleagues came to the A9 Emergency Center before the New Year's transition to record the Tet duty of the medical team.
Outside the hospital, Hanoi is radiant in the atmosphere of welcoming Spring. Central streets are crowded with people. Families gather around the year-end meal. But behind the glass door of the A9 Emergency Center is a completely different picture.
While millions of people are eagerly welcoming the new year, doctors at the A9 Emergency Center are attentively monitoring every heartbeat, every breath of the patient. Here, no one is allowed to be negligent for just a few minutes. Because sometimes those few minutes can determine a person's life.
On that special night of duty, I had the opportunity to chat with MSc.BS Nguyen Quoc Linh, Emergency Center A9. When asked how many years this year doctors have celebrated New Year's Eve at the hospital, he just smiled: "I don't remember anymore".
A simple answer but that made me think for a long time. Because behind that are many unfinished Tet holidays, many times absent from family reunion meals.
16 years of hearing the emergency whistle instead of the sound of fireworks. That is the feeling of MSc. Le Quang Tri, Head Nurse of Emergency Center A9. More than 20 years in the profession, he has spent 16 years celebrating New Year's Eve at the hospital.
Nurse Tri recounted that there were years when she just received a Tet greeting call from her family and immediately received a severe multiple-traumatic injury case. All personal feelings had to be immediately put aside. The only priority is the patient. The patient overcoming the critical condition is the most meaningful New Year gift for doctors and nurses.
Tet holiday is like a normal day. Hanoi has gradually fallen asleep. But the A9 Emergency Center is still brightly lit. The sound of ambulances echoes continuously. The sound of stretchers rolling quickly on the corridor. The sound of monitors emitting warning signals non-stop. In less than an hour, many critically ill patients were taken to the emergency room. Doctors have almost no time to rest.
The biggest pressure is not staying up all night. The biggest pressure is to always stay awake," said M.Sc. Dr. Nguyen Minh Hieu, A9 Emergency Center.
The box of cold rice on the duty table. Dr. Hieu took the opportunity to have dinner when the clock had entered a new day. The box of rice had just opened, Dr. Hieu had just eaten a few bites when the call from the emergency room rang out. Without hesitation, the doctor immediately stood up, the box of rice lay on the table.
The sound of the ambulance whistle just finished in front of the A9 Emergency Center, a man unconscious was immediately pushed quickly into the emergency room. Doctors and nurses almost did not need to exchange much. Some checked their airways, some placed monitors to monitor, some prepared emergency medicine. All operations took place in a few short minutes.
When I returned nearly an hour later, the food was cold, no one remembered it anymore. Amidst the continuous emergency cycle, a proper meal sometimes became a luxury. That was the moment that made me understand more about the sacrifices behind the white blouse.
At the A9 Emergency Center, lights are still on day and night. Races of life and death still take place every hour, every minute. Amidst the pressure of overload and increasingly complex cases, doctors and nurses still quietly stick to the front lines, keeping hope for hundreds of patients every day.
Behind each life saved are sleepless nights, pressures that are not easy to name, and the dedication of those in white blouse who are silently fighting at the boundary between life and death.
