New Squadcast Interview with C26 Athlete, Sean Sanford who is a certified anesthetist on the front lines at a dedicated Covid-19 hospital. He’s one of the nicest guys you’ll meet and we have a rational discussion about what is going on in his life, how he approaches his work, and the good and bad of what’s going on right now. I can say for certain this answered a lot of questions I had. We definitely talked a little triathlon, but most of this discussion was about Covid-19 because he’s been getting a lot of questions from friends and feels it’s important to give people a different perspective that what is generally available to the public.

Occupation: Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist (CRNA) Employer: University Of MN Medical Center Currently redeployed in a voluntary basis to Bethesda Hospital where we are strictly taking care of COVID-19 patients. I specifically manage the airways of these patients when they need to be placed on mechanical ventilation in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU). Meaning I place a breathing tube in the patients that need to be place on a ventilator when they have impending respiratory failure secondary to COVID-19. Topics:

  • Life at a dedicated Covid-19 Hospital
  • General projections for a month and two months
  • Helping people breathe
  • Why he wants to share this information
  • Preparing and reacting to the virus
  • The majority of patients recovering
  • Some bad and good news
  • Pre-existing conditions
  • How triathlon benefits him with resiliency
  • The mental aspects of a pandemic
  • The treatment protocol
  • What makes Intensive Care Unique
  • ICU capacity?
  • Intervening early enough
  • Balancing the stress with triathlon
  • How he’s getting into yoga and meditation
  • Certified anesthetist
  • How he calms and reassures patients
  • Why he does what he does
  • The importance of getting outside to do something
  • Has Covid been here longer than we think?
  • Why he’s hopeful of getting back together with people soon