Just listen to how things have been lately for COVID-IC UNERS, Anthony Looney.

I can't remember the last time I worked a shift and didn't put a body in a body bag.

Looney is a travel nurse. He's based in Kentucky, but his most recent assignment has been in North Dakota,

where he spent the week of Thanksgiving in a hotel room. And we know that because he kept an audio diary for us.

So I'm pretty exhausted. I've worked four 12s in a row and then I have to day off and I'll be going back for three more in a row before I get another day off.

Looney has been working at Sanford Medical Center in Fargo. It's the only level one trauma center in the state, which is largely rural.

So patients come from all over.

To my understanding, they've had to open up a couple different units that didn't even exist before.

Before to fit these patients into their hospital.

In North Dakota, like a lot of places, the biggest problem isn't space. It's a lack of staff.

A safe COVID-ICU unit, Looney says, has a patient to nurse ratio of two to one.

And that's because we need to be watching these people's intake and output and their electrolots and their lives and replacing their lives and doing just normal stuff that nurses do.

But if you add on a third patient, then things get more unsafe.

And if you tack on a fourth patient, it becomes even more unsafe.

And every day, more patients are being admitted to hospitals that cannot make the math work.

There are only so many travel nurses like Anthony Looney to go around.

And he's been working 60 hours a week, spending what little time he gets off work, alone in his hotel room, ordering takeout on DoorDash.

I'm just really beat from working so much.

I miss my home, I miss my coworkers that I work really close to down in Kentucky.

And my dog's up here with me. She's keeping me sane.

And I'm going to log off here and probably take another night.

Consider this.

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