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ER Physician Jose Torradas '01 Creates COVID-19 Toolkit
Jose Torradas ’01 is an ER physician in Bucks County, Pennsylvania. In 2015, he joined the American College of Emergency Physicians and has since been a bilingual media spokesperson and political advocate, meeting with legislators and handling interviews both in English and Spanish on the local and national level. This spring, he and other emergency medicine physicians created COVID19@home, a free guide developed for the general public and geared toward those who have COVID or COVID-like symptoms and are managing their symptoms at home. He has been interviewed by CNN, CBS 3, CNN en Espanol and Univision.
Tell me about your career and what you’ve done since graduating from Tower Hill.
I graduated from Tower Hill in 2001, from MIT in 2005 and Penn Med in 2010 after spending a sabbatical year in Sao Paulo, Brazil. I specialized in emergency medicine at North Shore University Hospital in New York and later moved to Northern California with my wife, who is also a physician. We lived in San Francisco, Napa and Sonoma counties for five years working in various hospitals before returning to the Delaware Valley in 2018. We currently live near New Hope, Pennsylvania and are expecting our first child in September.
In 2015, I joined the American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP—the country's largest representative body of ER doctors) and have since been a bilingual media spokesperson and political advocate, meeting with legislators and handling interviews both in English and Spanish on the local and national level.
What does your job currently entail, and how has your role changed due to COVID-19?
Emergency medicine (EM) doctors work almost exclusively in emergency departments (also known as ERs), which means that no one ever makes an appointment to see us. Chances are that if you're meeting an ER doctor at their job, you or someone you know is having a pretty rough day. Recently our specialty has been thrust into the spotlight as front-liners with some of the highest exposure rates to COVID-19.
Outside of the ER, I have also been doing telemedicine work including COVID-19 screening and urgent care evaluations. The use of technology to connect with patients across the country has boomed during the pandemic, and it represents an exciting new frontier in the healthcare space, particularly in under-served communities.
What is COVID19@home? Why did you decide to create this website?
COVID19@home is a free guide developed for the general public and geared toward those who have COVID or COVID-like symptoms and are managing their symptoms at home. The toolkit provides information on self-care tips including breathing exercises, red flags for when to seek emergency care and also has a section for caregivers.
The project is a collaborative effort between several EM physicians including myself, ACEP and The Learning Agency. The idea for this website came from our internal polling that found that one in three respondents were lacking basic understanding in regard to the management of COVID-19. We felt a public service obligation to forego the politicization of the pandemic and to provide the community with a comprehensive and bias-free toolkit for patients and their families.
What has the response been to the website?
Overall the response has been quite positive. The site has generated more than 50,000 hits and has been featured on several major news outlets. We have learned that the public is looking for easily digestible information from experts whose only objectives are to keep the community alive and well.
How did your Tower Hill experience prepare you for your career?
My 12 years at Tower Hill undoubtedly laid the foundation for future success after graduation. The rigorous curriculum taught by world-class faculty was essential in preparing me for the world beyond West 17th Street. Our graduating class in 2001 placed over 25% in Ivy League or equivalent schools, and there aren't many institutions that can produce those kinds of numbers.
