Pinay nurse in Dubai, who survived COVID-19, shares why she's returning to the frontlines

Mary Rose Cesa has barely started working as a nurse after a five-year stint as a dental assistant. She did not think that one of her first hurdles would be a heath crisis overwhelming nations around the world.

Fighting the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Dubai, it was only a matter a time before she contracted the disease herself.

Rose, 34, shared her story on Facebook, saying that soon she'll be able to call herself a COVID-19 survivor. But it was a tough and emotional journey getting there.

It was on April 9 that she started sneezing and getting a runny nose, which she brushed off. The next day, she woke up with a severe headache, body pain and no appetite. She also lost her sense of taste and smell. She had a check up on April 11.

On April 12, she learned that she was COVID-19 positive.

"I cried again because I was so worried for my family thinking I what if I infected them? I instructed my brother to clean our room thoroughly after I Ieave," she said.

She said that her first night after getting admitted to the hospital was "like a nightmare."

"I coudn't sleep, I just cried while praying for their safety and everyone in our household," she said.

Fortunately, she only spent two nights in the hospital and stayed in a hotel for the rest of her recovery. As of April 18, she already got one negative test.

Already, Rose is planning to return to duty after her two-week quarantine.

The big why

Rose's journey to becoming a practicing nurse in Dubai was not an easy one. She was already a registered nurse in the Philippines by 2006, but because she moved to Dubai for work, she needed a different license to continue.

In an interview with GMA News Online, she said the only job she could get was a position for a dental assistant, which she held for five years. Before that, she had stints as a school nurse and as a company nurse.

Finally, in 2017, she was able to work at a hospital as a registered nurse, 11 years after initially earning that title in the Philippines.

She never could have imagined that she would be in the frontlines fighting a pandemic.

She shared that she "cried a lot" when she was pulled out of the General and Plastic Surgery Outpatient Department to work at the Isolation Ward amid the COVID-19 pandemic. However, because she was new, she couldn't refuse.

Now, after surviving COVID-19, she is raring to return to duty to help fight off the pandemic.

Asked why, she said she feels for the patients and her fellow frontliners.

"Kasi po kung di ako babalik, lalo pong kawawa 'yung mga pasyente namin, at naiisip ko rin po 'yung mga kasama ko na kulang na po kami sa staff at napapagod na din po sila," she said.

"Sinasabihan nga po ako ng mga kasama ko na magpalakas at magpagaling po ako agad kasi kailangan pa nila ako. Saka di po madali maging pasyente kasi naranasan ko rin po e. Sa mga nurses at lahat ng frontliners lang din kami nakakakuha ng lakas at pag-asa, lalo na walang pwede dumalaw sa kanila at wala silang makausap," she added.

She also said that given the situation, the only solution is for everyone to help each other. She is also all the more stronger for what she has overcome.

"Akala ko pa noong una, simple lang ito pero araw-araw dumadami ang cases," she shared.

"Pero hindi na ako pinanghihinaan ng loob."

—JCB, GMA News