Vicky Nguyen is a reporter who has been delivering expert advice and important information on the COVID-19 pandemic for TODAY and NBC Nightly News. Here’s how she copes with living and breathing novel coronavirus coverage.
It was Sunday, March 15, when I got a call in the middle of the night from my boss about how someone on the third hour of TODAY tested positive for novel coronavirus.
I was supposed to go to work on Monday to do a Q&A for the TODAY show, but everyone who may have had contact with that person was told to stay home and self-quarantine. I offered to do my segment via FaceTime and TODAY quickly adapted so I could still go on air and talk about the emerging novel coronavirus news and social distancing.
At the same time, my husband and I had to make some tough personal decisions for our family (he is an anesthesiologist). We live with our three kids and my parents, who are in their sixties and seventies, and it worried us that they could also be exposed to COVID-19.
We decided I would restrict myself to a mini-room that we call a “guest room” (but really, it just fits a pull-out sofa bed). My husband disinfected and wiped down everything in our home and treated me as if I was infected with the virus.
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A COVID-19 coronavirus update from concerned physicians https://t.co/uhnQAfSL6S
By the next afternoon, I eventually got more information and learned that my exposure was no more than what the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) would consider low risk. So, I was able to continue my work and we could breathe a sigh of relief. But, in that time, things had changed for my family, my job, and the city of New York.
Schools closed and my kids were suddenly home. My husband and I both still leave the house to go to work, so we started taking off our shoes as soon as we get in, washing our hands thoroughly, and changing our clothes immediately before interacting with our kids. My husband also works regular shifts with COVID-19 patients, leaving us to wonder whether he should be staying in a hotel to protect our family.
#ThankYou pic.twitter.com/yqzwkbw8ea
I used to travel a lot for work to interview people, but I can’t do that right now. While we have the option to do all of our work from home and it’s remarkable that more than 95 percent of NBC employees at 30 Rock are working remotely, I still go to the studio to shoot most of my segments. It provides me some normalcy, plus it takes the stress out of worrying whether my internet connection will drop out.
Even though I’m at the studio, the experience is very different. In the past, I’d walk 25 minutes to work and interact with plenty of people at the office. Now, a car comes right to our home, picks me up, and takes me directly to the studio. I’ll do a live segment, then go right back to the car, which takes me straight home. Then, I continue the rest of my day with calls, interviewing, writing scripts, texting and calling my team, and working on my laptop.
Life has changed significantly, and it happened so quickly.
I now spend my workday poring over data related to COVID-19.
In the past, my reporting beat was very broad. I’d cover health products, online scams, how safe the netting is at Major League Baseball games. The world was our oyster before the pandemic—we could report on anything we thought was interesting and travel anywhere to do it.
Now, I focus on how to help people get through this pandemic and how to help them live their lives—how to handle deliveries, how to shop safely, what to do if you need to home-school kids, and how to balance working from home. We’re trying to help people with their anxiety and fear by empowering them with information.
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I watch daily briefings and am constantly on Twitter, trying to learn more about what people want to know about the virus. I’m on the CDC’s website all the time, along with looking at what other news outlets are covering.
I’ve found that learning about the virus makes it a lot less scary to me.
Reading so much about novel coronavirus has helped me tremendously. Learning about how to slow the spread of the infection, the best things you can do to protect yourself, and how to train yourself not to touch your nose, mouth, and eyes—I feel like those are things I can control. Knowing what I can do to lower my risk makes COVID-19 feel a lot less scary.
Learn the answers to COVID-19 FAQs:
I’ve also been reveling in being able to spend extra time with my children, and it gets my mind off of the virus.
They keep me grounded, and they make things fun. My kids will have a dance party or do an art project—joining in helps me decompress. I’m just trying to focus on this opportunity to spend time with them without having to worry about rushing off to school or activities.
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Once every three to four days, my husband and I will take the kids outside to do a social distancing walk to Central Park. The kids will ride their scooters, we’ll all get some vitamin D, and we’ll try to take deep breaths and really appreciate that, so far, we are all healthy.
I’ve always lived my life with the philosophy of not stressing out about the things I can’t change. That’s been incredibly helpful these days.
I feel a great responsibility in this time. I realize now, more than ever, how important it is to give people practical information that can help them with their daily lives. Information helps make us feel better about the things we can do, even in this uncertain time.
I’m working harder than I ever have before, but I’m thankful I have the opportunity to do that. I can see the impact my work is having on people. I’m going to continue to do a lot of research and give people the right guidance so we can all get through this together.
For more of reporting from NBC News’ Investigative and Consumer correspondent Vicky Nguyen, watch TODAY and NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt.
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