LA Chargers To Take 2 Doctors, 2 Nurses To The Super Bowl
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) — Four healthcare workers who have been on the frontlines in the fight against COVID-19 have been selected to go to the Super Bowl by the Los Angeles Chargers.
Each NFL team is inviting four healthcare workers to attend Super Bowl LV at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa Bay, Fla. Fan attendance at the game is being limited and a large number will be made up of healthcare workers who have received both vaccination shots.
A.G. Spanos, the team's president of business operations, says it's one way the team and the NFL can show their gratitude.
"It is their sacrifice – multiple work shifts, the physical and mental toll, time away from their family – that continues to help hold our community together," Spanos said in a statement. "We are honored to recognize not just these healthcare workers but all healthcare workers in our community who tirelessly continue to do their jobs in the face of unprecedented adversity."
The medical professionals chosen include Josh Albrektson, a board-certified medical doctor in diagnostic radiology. He was one of the first to volunteer for the Pfizer vaccine clinical trials and recruited roughly 100 to join him in vaccine trials over the past several months, according to the Chargers. Lili Ruiz, a certified nurse at CalVet West Los Angeles, has been taking extra shifts and staying at the side of residents whose loved ones could not be there for.
Chargers superfan – and 2020 NFL Fan of the Year – Dr. Vadim Fanous was unsurprisingly also chosen to go to the big game.
Fanous, an internal physician, has been working with COVID-19 patients at Torrance Memorial Medical Center, which has been at capacity since Thanksgiving. He'll be accompanied to the Super Bowl by his wife, Stephanie, a nurse who has been working to triage patients and divert them from packed emergency rooms.
"We are honored to salute those who have demonstrated dedication, commitment and courage deserve our deepest gratitude and admiration," Peter O'Reilly, NFL's executive vice president of club business and league events, said in a statement.
The Super Bowl takes place on Feb. 7 in Tampa Bay and will air live on CBS2.
