Every Thursday, we share a story about a Sinai Health Champion of Care, or a member of our community who has helped provide critical support to our patients, our teams and our hospitals.

Q & A with Trisha Young, RN

For more than 13 years, Trisha Young has been a nurse in Mount Sinai Hospital’s Newton Glassman Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. We asked her about her experience working in the NICU through the COVID-19 crisis - and how donors helped.

How has the pandemic changed your work at the NICU?

I'm so grateful to be working in the NICU during this pandemic. Thankfully, there has been minimal exposure during this time. However the potential risks have taught us all to be more aware of taking extra precautions to keep everyone safe. We've learned how to conserve, while maintaining the integrity of our current infection control protocols. New policies are helping decrease and prevent the spread of infections, and we've also reviewed and changed practices to ensure safety of the patients and staff.

What challenges and also what positives have emerged from this crisis?

One challenge is that we’ve had more visiting restrictions, so parents can’t always be here physically as much as they would like. But one positive is that the team has stepped in to provide extra love to their little ones. This support has given parents peace of mind amidst the stress of COVID.

What do you think you will remember most about this time?

Twelve-hour shifts of wearing a mask and or full PPEs can be hot and exhausting. However we were all in it together. We've deeply appreciated meal donations, which is always a huge highlight of the day. There are many things that you can look at to say that this situation is awful. The reality is that our environment and the dedication of all the staff allowed us to feel safe coming into work. Though we have been isolated from our families and friends at home, we were together with our work families and that made things better.