Several foreign (German, English and American) teams full of doctors, experts and specialists have arrived in the Czech Republic. The aim of their presence here was to help Czech doctors in the fight against COVID-19. But the truth is that the military paramedics didn't come to physically treat anyone. It's rather a mutual exchange of information and consultation.
A team of military medical professionals from the Texas and Nebraska National Guard is here to help fight the COVID-19 pandemic. The team was selected based on the extensive experience of its members in the fight against coronavirus in the United States. The American paramedics should advise their Czech colleagues and consult with them on best practices.
"We are grateful that the National Guard of Nebraska and Texas will be able to use their long-standing partnerships with the Czech Republic in helping our ally in need,"
US Ambassador Stephen King had said before the paramedics arrived.
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Peter Coldwell. Source: archiv LP-life.cz
"I am glad that these highly qualified American professionals will come and share their experiences and best practices with Czech doctors and nurses. At the same time I am certain that both parties will benefit from the virtual connection with experts in the United States,"
he added.
Press conference
A meeting with Peter Coldwell took place at the American Center on Monday. He admitted that he was more than satisfied with his visit to the Czech Republic. He and his team visited the hospital in Olomouc and, of course, the hastily built field hospital in Letňany, Prague.
"It's unbelievable how great a job the Czech army did in Letňany, I was impressed. It turns out that we do it very similarly here and back in America,"
a doctor of British origin who has been working in the army for over 40 admitted at a press conference. During the conference, he even joked about lacking an elevator in the places he'd visited and having to walk up a lot of stairs.
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Americký vojenský lékař Peter Coldwell a tiskový mluvčí Velvyslanectví USA.Source: archiv LP-life.cz
Pronájem luxusního bytu, Praha 2 Vyšehrad, Praha 2
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Mutual cooperation
"Our goal here was to speak to our colleagues and compare which testing and tracing strategies we're choosing and whether either of could do something differently,"
he explained, adding that the Americans are taking away from us the knowledge of the use of plasma from people who had already recovered from coronavirus. According to him, this method was not so popular in America, but our knowledge shows that the potential for its use is considerable.
"I must say that I was amazed by the work of your doctors and nurses, it was a great experience for me to see them at work,"
the doctor praised his Czech colleagues. However, he and his colleagues are not authorized to treat Czech patients here, which actually wasn't the goal of their journey.
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Peter Coldwell.Source: archiv LP-life.cz
He underwent Covid-19 himself
Coldwell himself admitted that he'd had the disease in the summer, but had no idea where he might have caught it. According to his words, he went through a phase of coughing, headache, joint pain and fever, but he self-prescribed corticoids and after two weeks he was able to return to work without difficulty.
"Then I struggled with fatigue for a long time,"
he admitted.
The doctor and his team intend to stay in the Czech Republic until November 24, but he doesn't rule out that they would stay longer if necessary. He said that he had been in Prague in the role of a tourist years ago, squeezing in crowds of people to see the monuments, but when he goes to the Charles Bridge now, he never meets more then five, which makes him feel rather stange. In the coming days, his team plans to visit the Prague military hospital and meet with the Deputy Minister of Health.
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Peter Coldwell s českými kolegy z nemocnice v Olomouci.Source: archiv Velvyslanectví USA
