人物:抗击疫情的一线英雄们(2)

DR. ESTHER CHOO, 47 ER Physician and Associate Professor

ESTHER CHOO医生，47岁，急诊内科医生，副教授

Oregon Health & Science University, Portland

俄勒冈健康与科学大学，波特兰

I heard one physician say something like, “I feel like I’m standing¹ at the shore, but instead of a wave coming in, it’s a tsunami², and I cannot run away.”

我听到一位内科医生这样说，“我感觉自己就像站在岸边，但迎面而来的不是海浪，而是海啸，我无法逃跑。”

That’s what it is. It’s bigger than anything that we’ve faced in our lifetimes.

就是这种感觉。它是我们一生中遇到的最严峻的事情。

And we do what we always do: what needs to be done.

我们做了一直在做的事：做需要做的事。

People are having hard discussions with their families about “who takes care of my kids if I’m gone?”

人们在和家人商量“如果我不在了，谁来照顾我的孩子?”

My husband is in radiology, so he’s a little distant from patient care.

我丈夫是放射科的，所以他离护理病人远一点。

But he’s also a physician and goes into the hospital every day. What if. . . ?

但他也是一名医生，每天都去医院。如果……?

We’ve had conversations reviewing our own plan for who’s going to take our kids.

我们商量了一下，万一发生不幸，谁来照顾我们的孩子。

We’re very sensitive about our symptoms. I get a little itch³ to my nose, and I’m like, seasonal⁴ allergies⁵ or my first symptom?

我们对自己的症状很敏感。我的鼻子有点痒，我就会想：这是季节性过敏还是我出现了第一个症状?

I do a lot of decontamination. I change clothes before I leave the hospital, wash up to my elbows.

我做了很多消毒工作。离开医院前我会换衣服，连手肘都洗。

When I get home, my 4-year-old thinks it’s a game where she tries to hug me but I run into the bathroom and shut the door to shower from head to toe before I touch her.

回家后，我4岁的孩子以为这是游戏，她想抱我，但我赶紧跑进浴室，关上门，从头洗到脚，之后才敢碰她。

She thinks it’s hilarious⁶. A 4-year-old doesn’t really understand viruses.

她觉得很搞笑。一个4岁的孩子还不太了解病毒。

DR. W. DAVID HARDY⁷, 64 Infectious-Disease Consultant⁸

DAVID HARDY医生，64岁，传染病顾问

It does feel like wartime.We are at war with a virus.

这种感觉确实像战争。我们在和病毒作战。

It’s the unknown that is hard, that is scary, but we control what we can.

未知的才是困难的，可怕的，但是我们可以控制我们所能控制的。

Everyone is concerned about contaminating themselves.

每个人都担心自己被感染。

In the hospital we have to be mindful to inhibit⁹ our automatic motions all the time.

在医院里，我们必须时刻注意克制自己的无意识动作。

It’s like working in a surgical¹⁰ suite—but all the time, every day.

其实就像穿着外科手术服工作一样——只不过是每时每刻每天都穿着。

Every time I hear about health-care workers getting infected or even dying, which is not a surprise, it sends shock waves through the staff.

每次我听到有医护人员感染甚至死亡的消息(这并不奇怪)，都会在医护人员中引起轩然大波。

It’s so easily transmitted person-to-person that eventually everyone is going to get exposed.

它很容易在人与人之间传播，最终每个人都会接触到它。

The majority will have a mild illness they won’t even recognize.

多数人的病情都很轻，甚至辨别不出来。

What do I tell my loved ones who ask me if it’s okay?

如果我所爱的人问我情况还好吗，我该怎么回答他们?

My parents—they are in their 90s; my dad has diabetes—I have asked them not to leave their house at all, unless it’s for a walk outdoors.

我的父母——他们已经90多岁了;我爸爸有糖尿病——我已经要求他们不要出门，除非是出去散步。

“Don’t be friendly,” I tell them. “This is not the time to say hello.”

“不要客套，”我告诉他们。“现在不是热情问候的时候。”

1 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

2 tsunami   

n.海啸

参考例句：

• Powerful quake sparks tsunami warning in Japan.大地震触发了日本的海啸预警。
• Coastlines all around the Indian Ocean inundated by a huge tsunami.大海啸把印度洋沿岸地区都淹没了。

3 itch   

n.痒，渴望，疥癣；vi.发痒，渴望

参考例句：

• Shylock has an itch for money.夏洛克渴望发财。
• He had an itch on his back.他背部发痒。

4 seasonal   

adj.季节的，季节性的

参考例句：

• The town relies on the seasonal tourist industry for jobs.这个城镇依靠季节性旅游业提供就业机会。
• The hors d'oeuvre is seasonal vegetables.餐前小吃是应时蔬菜。

5 allergies   

n.[医]过敏症；[口]厌恶，反感；（对食物、花粉、虫咬等的）过敏症( allergy的名词复数 )；变态反应，变应性

参考例句：

• Food allergies can result in an enormous variety of different symptoms. 食物过敏会引发很多不同的症状。 来自辞典例句
• Let us, however, examine one of the most common allergies; hayfever. 现在让我们来看看最常见的变态反应的一种--枯草热。 来自辞典例句

6 hilarious   

adj.充满笑声的，欢闹的；[反]depressed

参考例句：

• The party got quite hilarious after they brought more wine.在他们又拿来更多的酒之后，派对变得更加热闹起来。
• We stop laughing because the show was so hilarious.我们笑个不停，因为那个节目太搞笑了。

7 hardy   

adj.勇敢的，果断的，吃苦的；耐寒的

参考例句：

• The kind of plant is a hardy annual.这种植物是耐寒的一年生植物。
• He is a hardy person.他是一个能吃苦耐劳的人。

8 consultant   

n.顾问；会诊医师，专科医生

参考例句：

• He is a consultant on law affairs to the mayor.他是市长的一个法律顾问。
• Originally,Gar had agreed to come up as a consultant.原来，加尔只答应来充当我们的顾问。

9 inhibit   

vt.阻止，妨碍，抑制

参考例句：

• Don't let ego and greed inhibit clear thinking and hard work.不要让自我和贪婪妨碍清晰的思维和刻苦的工作。
• They passed a law to inhibit people from parking in the street.他们通过一项法令以阻止人们在街上停车。

10 surgical   

adj.外科的，外科医生的，手术上的

参考例句：

• He performs the surgical operations at the Red Cross Hospital.他在红十字会医院做外科手术。
• All surgical instruments must be sterilised before use.所有的外科手术器械在使用之前，必须消毒。