The Potential and Contribution of Our Medical Team Should Not Be Overlooked: An Open Letter from the Staff of ‘NORK’ Clinical Hospital to the Prime Minister and President

The staff of ‘NORK’ Clinical Hospital has sent an open letter to Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and President Armen Sarkissian. The letter states:

“September 22, 2020
Open letter to His Excellency Mr. Armen Sarkissian, President of the Republic of Armenia
To the Honorable Mr. Nikol Pashinyan, Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia

On the basis of a decree by President Armen Sarkissian, our partners working in the healthcare sector were awarded for their contributions to the organization, coordination, and prevention of the coronavirus pandemic. We sincerely congratulate our partners, highly valuing their dedicated work and contributions. However, it is essential to note that the contribution and role of NORK Clinical Hospital, now the National Center for Infectious Diseases, in all this has not been less significant. The entire staff has been at the forefront of the fight against the virus. We have proudly carried and continue to carry the role of a frontline warrior, and we will keep doing so.

December 2019 - First cases of COVID-19 in China.
January 2020 - Arrival of the virus in the Republic of Armenia, with all measures directed at preventing the infection's penetration in collaboration with the National Center for Infectious Diseases.
February 2020 - It was the first hospital to reprofile two departments for suspected COVID-19 patients.
March 1 - The first case of COVID-19 was recorded in ‘NORK’ Clinical Hospital.
March 2020 - ‘NORK’ Clinical Hospital was the first hospital fully reprofiled as a COVID-19 hospital. This reprofiling signified a wartime situation for the staff, calling for a response commensurate to that situation from the hospital director down to the head nurse.
‘NORK’ continued to fight alone until March 26, when other centers started getting involved. Even after this involvement, it remained the only hospital conducting triage. It managed triage throughout the months of high daily case identification of COVID-19 (April, May, June), with a limited bed capacity, striving not to discharge any seriously ill or potentially serious patients.

‘NORK’ Clinical Hospital has a PCR laboratory for COVID-19 testing, which is the second most loaded in Armenia. In recent months, ‘NORK’ Clinical Hospital has been conducting extensive research on COVID-19 involving several scientists from the academic sector. This program has gained interest from international medical organizations. And all this is just a part of the activities carried out by ‘NORK’ Clinical Hospital and its chief commander M.V. Davidiants in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. We believe that the potential and contribution of our medical team should not be overlooked and valued. When proposing candidates by our country’s President, Prime Minister, and Government, as well as the Ministry of Health, those who have truly been the frontline fighters against this disease should not be forgotten or ignored. We understand that not everyone can be awarded, and the selection was made between the nominated candidates, but justice dictates that the collective that has genuinely been and continues to be at the forefront of the fight against this disease cannot be overlooked.”