In the spring, Michelle Schultz had a particularly difficult COVID-19 patient. The man, who was in his 60s, had come to the emergency room short of breath a few days before. Even though his oxygen levels were pretty low, he refused medication and wanted to leave the Indiana hospital without a mask on. The nurse and some of her colleagues tried convincing him to stay, but the man insisted he felt fine. Besides, he said, COVID-19 is a fake virus hospitals are using to make money. As he put on his MAGA hat and walked out the door, she worried about what would happen next. Would he infect others? Would he go to bed and not wake up?

“We never have had people who thought we were lying to them,” said Schultz, who asked to be identified by her middle name to protect her privacy. “It feels like the public doesn’t trust us anymore.”

On November 14, a South Dakota nurse named Jodi Doering wrote a viral Twitter thread about her experience treating COVID patients in intensive care units […]