Yuma doctor back to work after viral coronavirus social media posts
Dec 15, 2020, 4:15 PM | Updated: 9:21 pm
(Facebook Photo/ Dr. Cleavon Gilman)
(Facebook Photo/ Dr. Cleavon Gilman)
PHOENIX – An emergency room doctor who spoke out on Twitter about the reality of taking care of coronavirus patients in Yuma is back to work after an outpouring of support on social media.
Dr. Cleavon Gilman, who works at Yuma Regional Medical Center, recently came under fire for speaking out on social media about what he’s seen on the front lines. Last month, he posted a series of tweets about there being no ICU beds left at his Yuma hospital.
“My priority has always been on policy, it has always been on raising awareness on this virus,” Gilman told KTAR News 92.3 FM’s The Gaydos & Chad Show on Tuesday.
“My top priority has always been about patients, about the people of Arizona and it has always been about the front line health care providers.”
🧵NO ICU BEDS! When our rural Arizona hospital ICU is full, we medevac patients to different hospitals across the state, BUT NOT TONIGHT, because there were NO ACCEPTING HOSPITALS, so for an entire 12 hour shift we managed ICU patients, while treating other emergencies. 1/13
— Cleavon MD (@Cleavon_MD) November 23, 2020
His tweets conveying the reality of COVID-19 have gone viral and even captured the attention of Oprah Winfrey.
Yuma Regional Medical Center relieved Gilman of his duties after his tweet gained so much attention, but he said that he’s since returned to work.
Gilman said getting back on the front lines is a great feeling and he’s appreciative of the support he’s received.
Yuma County has reported 23,206 coronavirus cases and 427 deaths since the start of the pandemic. Across Arizona, the documented totals of COVID-19 reached 424,382 infections and 7,422 fatalities on Tuesday, according to the Arizona Department of Health Services.
Although his intention was never to go viral, he said he felt like had a moral obligation to tell the truth about what he was seeing in the hospital system. For him, he’s seen too many patients lose their life to the virus, including three of his colleagues and a cousin.
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Before coming to Yuma, Gilman previously treated COVID-19 patients in New York at the start of the pandemic, and he said that compared to New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, Arizona Gov. Ducey’s approach to handling the pandemic isn’t enough.
“Here in Arizona, it’s been really hard to be a health care provider on the front lines to see your community get decimated by this virus and just like have some support,” Gilman said.
He noted that Cuomo’s actions to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 in the original epicenter helped health care workers in the long run. In Arizona, Ducey has shied away from taking more mitigation efforts even as COVID-19 cases continue to surge to record levels.
“When you don’t shut things down or have a statewide mask mandate, all you’re doing is creating more patients,” Gilman said. “We have families to go home to, and the longer this drags on, the longer we’re exposing ourselves to this deadly virus.
“It’s a deadly game of Russian Roulette.”
