Oscar Sánchez Featured on NBC News

Critical care nurse and MCPHS alum Oscar Sánchez was featured on the NBC News website for his work at Massachusetts General Hospital during the coronavirus pandemic. A Latino man originally from the Dominican Republic, Sanchez has seen firsthand how particularly hard the virus has hit communities of color like his. It’s been draining and devastating work for Sánchez—he says that the pandemic has made his job as a frontline worker make him feel like a solider in a war—and he’s seen entire families become infected with the virus.

Sánchez has found being bilingual a huge asset during the pandemic, as so many of his COVID-19 patients have been Hispanic. Being able to communicate with them has provided comfort and clarity where the patients otherwise might not have it. And like many healthcare workers, he says that a simple way to mitigate the spread of this brutal virus is simply to wear a mask properly, covering both the nose and mouth.

Like many MCPHS students and alumni, Sánchez came to the United States as an immigrant. He arrived in the US from the Dominican Republic in 2004 as a young adult, and his education led him to MCPHS, where he earned his Postbaccalaureate Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree in 2015. He is one of many MCPHS community members who have been serving as healthcare heroes on the front lines of the coronavirus pandemic.