The message I have for people who don’t think Covid is real: grow up.
Grow up and mask up, because it is real.
Oh, I love you so much.
Thank you for taking the time and coming.
I didn't think I was going to make it.
I kind of said 'goodbye' to my family.
After weeks of treatment for coronavirus,
Duane Severson is finally able to see his daughter, Diana, safely.
Every day when I would call dad he didn't sound like dad.
He was so weak.
And his voice sounded so helpless.
And I just wanted to run and hug him.
I had Covid as well, so I was quarantined at home.
In North Dakota, it has taken time
to convince residents of Covid's seriousness.
I maybe was a little careless, but we were golfing every Wednesday.
And when the weather turned ickier,
instead of golfing, we started playing cards, and that was not smart.
It goes through your system.
And it'll pick out any weak spots you have.
Tell them it is very serious.
I mean, it's life and death.
For weeks, the state has had the highest number of cases
and deaths, per capita, in the country.
Things are not slowing down.
So obviously as a physician, this makes me very concerned.
I anticipate that our numbers will likely go up,
which reflects on the fact that people are going to be sicker.
We should focus on the problem at hand.
That means by mitigating risk,
by wearing masks, by hand hygiene and by social distancing.
I myself, I'm not too afraid of it.
I think there are a lot of people who are just tired of it.
And unfortunately, that means it's not going to get better with that sort of attitude.
I'm just not a believer in it. I think it was manmade, honestly.
It's not so hard to put on a mask, it's not so hard to brush your teeth or whatever.
You know it can be simple but some people made it an issue.
I just don't think it's necessary for that.
I understand for everybody else's safety. But that's just my take on it.
But I'm 22, I'm young and dumb.
For the healthcare workers in the state,
the coronavirus cycle shows no signs of slowing down.
This is your day every day?
Every day in the last few weeks,
this is what it's been, yes.
I've had to recently tell my staff
I may not be able to honour vacation.
As a manager, that is really tough.
My staff deserve their time off,
and to not allow that, it's heartbreaking.