Dr. Breen reported back to work on March 14, arriving to questions about the department’s stock of personal protective equipment and whether staff members could get Tyvek protective suits.

But the shattered city was further rocked when it learned that Dr. Lorna Breen of NewYork–Presbyterian Hospital had taken her own life on April 26, 2020, five years ago today.

Dr. Lorna Breen, 49, was medical director of the emergency department at New York Presbyterian's Allen hospital in Upper Manhattan. She died Sunday while visiting family in Charlottesville, Virginia.

'Hero' ER Doctor Who Treated NYC Coronavirus Patients Dies by Suicide at 49, Father Says "She tried to do her job, and it killed her," Dr. Philip C. Breen said of his daughter, Dr. Lorna M. Breen ...

In 2020, at the height of the pandemic, Dr. Lorna Breen, 49, felt overwhelmed by treating so many patients very ill with COVID-19. Then, she contracted COVID-19 and grappled with depression.

Updated April 29, 2020, 3:20 p.m. ET Dr. Lorna Breen, the medical director of the emergency department at NewYork-Presbyterian Allen Hospital, died by suicide in Charlottesville, Va.

Dr. Breen, 49, did not have a history of mental illness, her father said. But he said that when he last spoke with her, she seemed detached, and he could tell something was wrong.

Dr. Breen: "I’ve been observing this system very closely." Dr. Breen sits on several boards including the Board of Visitors which visits and inspects group homes. "And I’m also a parent," he said.