Health Workers: Have we made the situation grave for them??
June 22, 2020
The health workers in our country are in the same situation. They are frontline warriors in this battle of Coronavirus with Human Beings. And what are we doing?? We are creating problems for these health workers. They are being attacked and abused by the people whom they are helping. It's our moral duty to strengthen the will of the health workers and not to bring them down in this critical situation.
In this article, we tried to bring what's been going around with the health-care system in India.
The stress levels of Health Workers
Do you know the doctor-patient ratio recommended by WHO? It should be 1:1000. India had one allopathic doctor for every 1445 patients (assuming 80% availability of doctors) before COVID. As the number of infected doctors is increasing, the old ratio is getting even worse. Not only doctors, other health workers like staff nurses, ward boys, sanitation workers, and ambulance drivers are also getting infected. With each new infection, the mental and physical load on the uninfected staff is increasing.
Most health care professionals do not have an outlet for their stress or mode of communication since they are unable to see their family members who can emotionally support them. Doctors are not allowed to visit home because this may increase the chances and risk of passing on an infection to their loved ones.
Once a staff gets inside the PPE kit, he/she won't be able to drink water or even go for nature's call for a long time. They have to take extra precautionary measures because the surroundings are contaminated.
According to a recent survey, professionals in the healthcare domain face high amounts of anxiety. The never-ending queue of infected people and keeping oneself apart from their loved ones can lead them to a phase of severe depression.
Why People are Making it tougher
As unlock began, people started coming out of the home. Yes, the government must ease the movement of the people to regain the economy, but why people are not taking precautions when they come out of their home.
Why are people getting out without a mask? Or why are they not following social-distancing norms as instructed by the government? The more we show carelessness, the more will be the number of infected people.
People are distressed, especially those whose family members have tested positive for COVID-19. They can't meet the patient, and they may not get regular, timely updates by hospital authorities. Unfortunately, some of them might lose their near and dear ones. But that doesn't mean people should start acting violently against doctors. By doing that, they are not making it any simpler for the health workers. They are already under a lot of stress, and violence against them can lead to even worse conditions.
The present time is unprecedented, and we have to deal with it patiently.
What can we do?
The number of COVID-19 cases is still on the rise. The upcoming few months will prove to be a real test for our healthcare system. We should ideally move low-risk patients to temporarily set-up COVID facility centers. The new centers demand new health workers. To fulfill the same, the Government can allow final year MBBS students to work in such centers with proper training. But students must at least be promoted before they enter the battlefield.
None of the staff has ever seen a pandemic like this, and thus most of them are not properly-equipped to deal with this situation. Medical authorities should inform the staff about every new update of precautions.
The Government should give a proper PPE kit to every staff member who is fighting with coronavirus. They are risking their lives to save everyone, and no one knows how long will it take to bring the vaccine, so they need to be well protected.
The last and most essential part is a consistently-ignored facet of life, that is Mental health. The health workers have not been to their homes for a long time. They should take some free time to talk to their family members. A few relaxing moments can help them reduce their stress.
Health workers are the most valuable part of this battle. They are the only ones who can keep us safer in this pandemic. Don't create trouble for them. We have to help them as much as we can.
Health workers are the most valuable part of this battle. They are the only ones who can keep us safer in this pandemic. Don't create trouble for them. We have to help them as much as we can.
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