Letter to the editor: Westmoreland County, we will be OK!

My wife always tells my children, “I would jump in front of a bus to save your life.” Westmoreland County, I want you to know that the doctors, nurses and first responders of this county will jump in front of a virus to save your lives!

Every day health care professionals in this county are coordinating efforts to prepare to care for the county’s ill and injured. Media attention around covid-19 has been unprecedented. Every channel, every news story talks of this evolving viral pandemic. To some the media blitz is reassuring. To others, it can create panic and uncertainty.

We are preparing daily to meet this medical challenge. We are working to make sure that we can get care to your home when you call 911, and we are working to make sure that hospitals stand ready to care for all of your medical needs. The first responders, nurses and doctors are trained and eager to be there for you when you need us. The interagency cooperation and support is like nothing I have ever seen in the past.

We will be OK! I have faith in the system. I am not worried. I work with these medical professionals every day. They work 24/7 to keep you safe and healthy. They leave their families and come to work, exposing themselves to the very illnesses that afflict their patients. These people will literally jump in front of this virus for you.

Trust. Believe. Have faith. We will be OK!

William Jenkins, M.D.

Murrysville

The writer is an emergency physician and EMS medical director for Excela Health.