Unmasked: the medical student behind Faces of the Frontline
(Courtesy of Vibhu Krishna)
To honour essential workers and provide a platform for their voices, third-year medical student Vibhu Krishna founded Faces of the Frontline. The digital platform features essays by medical professionals, firefighters, sanitation workers and more, as well as messages of gratitude submitted by supporters. After only a few weeks of operation, the project has gained 7,000 followers on Instagram.
“How can we create a community around bolstering the mental health of front-line workers while also giving people a space to express their gratitude?” Vibhu remembers asking herself. “There are a lot of people out there who don't necessarily have money to donate or PPE [personal protective equipment] to give, but they have words.”
Some of the stories are heart wrenching. On her first day back from maternity leave, one doctor wrote about the pain of treating a crying mother who was struggling to breathe and separated from her infant at home. Other stories showcase the creativity of the medical community. A paediatrician in Brazil pinned a picture of Ariel from “The Little Mermaid” to her protective gear to comfort children who can’t see her smile behind the mask.
“There are a lot of people out there who don’t necessarily have money to donate or PPE to give, but they have words.”
Vibhu works with the COVID-19 Student Service Corps, a group led by her peers at Columbia University. As volunteers, they spend their days tracking down medical supplies, delivering coffee to hospitals and organising online refreshers on ventilators for doctors. From conversations with hospital workers, Vibhu realised that they did not have an outlet to talk about the challenges they’re facing. That’s when she decided to create one for them.
“Being able to overcome [the effects of COVID-19] has everything to do with our ability to acknowledge and understand each other and have empathy for one another. I think storytelling is one of the ways to offer that,” explains Vibhu.
A recent submission from Dr. Alaa Ramadan, a paediatrician from Texas and mother of two, especially resonated with Vibhu. In her post for Faces of the Frontline, Dr. Ramadan wrote about the weight of her job’s responsibility. “Medicine is much more than diagnosis and treatment. Your patient’s worries and pain become your own,” she shared.
The burden essential workers carry is heavy, especially now. Vibhu wants Faces of the Frontline’s posts to reflect their lived reality. That means not all stories can be uplifting. “We want this to convey a raw and unfiltered sense of humanity that is percolating through the masks of our heroes,” says Vibhu.
Vibhu wants to see some indelible changes in the U.S. health care system and society when the crisis passes. “I hope it forces hospitals and hospital systems to be prepared and have contingency plans in place. It also hopefully drives our communities together. To me, the crux of health care is to protect our shared humanity,” she explains.
The swell of positive reactions to Faces of the Frontline brings Vibhu joy. As does the team of students who volunteer their time to help grow the platform. But she admits that balancing Faces of the Frontline, volunteering and the general stress caused by the pandemic is a process.
To care for herself, Vibhu builds time into her schedule for the things she loves most. Every day she does yoga or meditation and works on The New York Times spelling bee puzzle. She FaceTimes with her family each week. And most days she has a five-minute Bollywood dance party with her roommate.
(Courtesy of Vibhu Krishna)
With one year left of medical school, Vibhu thinks she might go into women’s health or preventative medicine but notes that her interests could change. This crisis has taught her the value of learning to adapt. It has also expanded her ideas of who she considers heroic. As essential workers risk their lives and people who can remain home are doing so to help others, Vibhu now sees that all types of actions can be heroic and remarkable. Bringing it back to her project, she adds, “Every individual that takes the time to write an affirmation to me is a hero.”
Growing up in Ohio with physicians as parents, Vibhu says she always held a deep appreciation for the work of doctors. It’s the job she’s wanted to do for as long as she can remember. “[As a child] I drew this picture of myself wearing a doctor’s white coat and painted a landscape behind me,” remembered Vibhu. “I honestly haven’t really changed… I have wanted to be a doctor-artist hybrid that harnesses the power of creativity in order to help facilitate human health and well-being.”
Vibhu may not be a doctor yet, but she’s still helping others heal.
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