JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Justin Adams is exhausted.
The traveling ICU nurse, who's been on the frontlines in the fight against COVID since the beginning, is worn out and he's giving in.
"I am just so stressed out all the time," he explained.
COVID-19 is taking away his passion for the profession while also taking so many of his patients.
"I've seen like mom, dad and kids all being in the hospital," Adams told First Coast News.
He said the prognosis for children is typically better than their parents who are often on ventilators and not vaccinated. The worst part, he explained, are the death notifications he's had to give.
"Unfortunately it's become a very common thing for patients to die," Adams said.
First Coast News spoke to Adams earlier this year. He is still working in North Carolina, having worked in other hospitals in the southeast. His intensive care unit has grown to include other portions of the hospital.
"They have opened up another 12 bed ICU for COVID. It's completely full. Another floor they have designated six ICU bed," Adams said. "It's completely full."
His contract is up in January and he's looking for something outside of bedside care. He says his anxiety is the worst it's ever been in his 20-year career and for his well-being, nursing may have run its course.