Op-Ed: More and more of my patients are captives of COVID, indefinitely tethered to machines
![Nathan Gray Hospital Purgatory Op-Ed header for Sunday, Dec. 14, 2020.](https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/6f3849a/2147483647/strip/true/crop/3300x2550+0+0/resize/1200x927!/quality/75/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F51%2Fcd%2Fd29dd427418087cbb441d2b1de87%2Foe-gray-purgatory-header.jpg)
(Nathan Gray)
Gray is an assistant professor of medicine and palliative care at Duke University School of Medicine and an artist who draws comics on medical topics. @NathanAGray
![A series of nine Nathan Gray panels on medical purgatory in the time of the COVID-19 pandemic](https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/001216b/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1159x1500+0+0/resize/1200x1553!/quality/75/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fc4%2Fba%2F38369dbd47fd9f41e02cc945a5ee%2Foe-gray-medical-purgatory-online-01.jpg)
![A series of nine Nathan Gray panels on medical purgatory in the time of the COVID-19 pandemic](https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/4fb2376/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1159x1500+0+0/resize/1200x1553!/quality/75/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F3d%2Ff5%2F3d1d7c804d9ebec5772af1a4c2dc%2Foe-gray-medical-purgatory-online-02.jpg)
![A series of nine Nathan Gray panels on medical purgatory in the time of the COVID-19 pandemic](https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/638d0c0/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1159x1500+0+0/resize/1200x1553!/quality/75/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F8d%2Fb4%2Ff5b50a0f49a9a967a5c313f4165c%2Foe-gray-medical-purgatory-online-03.jpg)
![A series of nine Nathan Gray panels on medical purgatory in the time of the COVID-19 pandemic](https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/3425526/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1159x1500+0+0/resize/1200x1553!/quality/75/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F2f%2F96%2F768bcf5240649d2f53a0504b93cc%2Foe-gray-medical-purgatory-online-04.jpg)
![A series of nine Nathan Gray panels on medical purgatory in the time of the COVID-19 pandemic](https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/6a7aa58/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1159x1500+0+0/resize/1200x1553!/quality/75/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F54%2Fa9%2Fbf0c0efa4268ac2bd3f92c00bd40%2Foe-gray-medical-purgatory-online-05.jpg)
![A series of nine Nathan Gray panels on medical purgatory in the time of the COVID-19 pandemic](https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/8aef971/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1159x1500+0+0/resize/1200x1553!/quality/75/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F57%2F78%2F8565d48a4ecf922ef9c17e530dd7%2Foe-gray-medical-purgatory-online-06.jpg)
![A series of nine Nathan Gray panels on medical purgatory in the time of the COVID-19 pandemic.](https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/858188a/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1159x1500+0+0/resize/1200x1553!/quality/75/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Ff1%2F00%2F981587334f2ab5515f6df53c24d1%2Foe-gray-medical-purgatory-online-07.jpg)
![A series of nine Nathan Gray panels on medical purgatory in the time of the COVID-19 pandemic](https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/9d2b886/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1159x1500+0+0/resize/1200x1553!/quality/75/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F0e%2F6c%2F5eec214c490598bf4f4f5750a7a0%2Foe-gray-medical-purgatory-online-08.jpg)
![A series of nine Nathan Gray panels on medical purgatory in the time of the COVID-19 pandemic](https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/814966d/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1159x1500+0+0/resize/1200x1553!/quality/75/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fc4%2F98%2F64bef3a043c39ddb678030dc379f%2Foe-gray-medical-purgatory-online-09.jpg)
![A series of nine Nathan Gray panels on medical purgatory in the time of the COVID-19 pandemic](https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/c4aa62f/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1159x1500+0+0/resize/1200x1553!/quality/75/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F07%2Fcc%2F8ffb2bcb426097c340d0a2e16612%2Foe-gray-medical-purgatory-online-10.jpg)
(Nathan Gray / For The Times)
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