Dr Hemanta Dhungana
As covid-19 pandemic aggravated every day, Panic is growing in Nepal, and frontline health workers are enduring the weight of social fear. Health workers are facing the backlash in their communities and some doctor and nurse even barricaded from their residence by house owners over manic that they may be carrying virus.
In different part of the world, Doctors, nurses and other health workers are lionized and cheered by homebound individual for contributing front-line defense against Covid -19. But sadly, this is not the situation everywhere. In Nepal, front-line workers are stigmatized as vectors of contagion. Various news reports that health workers have been assaulted and chased away from homes. Panic is growing among the individual about catching the virus from the health workers themself.
Aside from belligerence, Doctors and nurses coping with a beleaguered hospital system with inadequate facilities and a smaller number of staff.Doctor are seen helpless than ever. The alarming number of attacks on health worker had heightened fear and fed up among health personals.It’s disheartening to be discriminated against and ostracized by the same people whom they serve and live together in the same society.Fear and hysteria are high right now. Being a health worker turn to be stigma. Health Workers are the victims of infuriated, indignant, or petrified general population. This increase of violence towards frontline health workers is due to worry of contagion, intensified by misinformation.As Doctors-patients relation has decline over recent years,many heath workers suffered from emotional exhaustion and phycologicaldistress.
It is everyone’s bounded responsibility to ensure the high morale high of the doctors,nurses, and health workers to defeat the corona virus together.Health workers knows well how to take precautions.All safety measures are being taken by hospital staff on corona virus duty assure that they do not carry any infection. The discrimination would demoralize them and derail the health sector. Health care staff are on the frontline working day and night selflessly in this unpresidential crisis. They are the heart and the soul of the war against corona virus. During this dark episode, the strength, dedication and kindness shown by doctors, nurse and healthcare workers is humbling.
There is a sense of tenseness, but there is also sense of hope as well. Health workers take a lot of comfort when they see many people doing their part in the community, when people maintaining social distance, staying at home to slow the tide of virus.This provide doctors and nurses the hope that need to fight this pandemic and to look after patients.It is heartwarming to see when certain community supports the health workers. Frontline heath workers are with all effort and energy to care us. A small tiny gestures or appreciation could provide healthcare workers a boost of morale.Eventually, this morale will be felt by patients from the medical workers.The covid-19 battle is easy when individual and community team up together.Front-liners safety is crucial to carry out everyday work smoothy and provide care to patients suffering from the disease.
Not all superheroes wear cap, they do wear white coat, mask and gloves. They need our support and motivation to fight a supervillain i.e. the corona virus. We are facing the storm in different boats sailing to survive. Let’s travel the journey with mutual respect, empathy and responsibility. All the atrocious behaviors on healthcare workers should be denounced and punished.
Some never had option to stay with family at home. Some never had free time to stock up on quarantine food and toilet roll as they were occupied serving you at hospital risking exposure to corona virus.
Let us come together and appreciate to all the frontline heath workers who are risking themself, so we have a better day. let us be grateful for those fearless heroes, who are there to rescue and keep us going. Let’s be thankful to every individual for helping to fight this common enemy and doing their part in flatting the curve.
(Dr Dhungana is Consultant Orthopedic surgeon at Midat Hospital)
