Garth Rattray | No apologies, and no priority for smitten staff

The COVID-19 era is taking a major toll on every aspect of our lives. We are rapidly approaching two years of anguish, with no end in sight. This plague uses people as the means of multiplying itself and infecting others. Sadly, many people refuse to carry out the changes in their lives that would stop it. Instead, they want to have their cake and eat it too. Many want freedom of movement, freedom from masks, freedom from frequent handwashing/sanitisation, freedom from vaccination, and freedom to congregate to their hearts’ desire; then they expect to enjoy freedom from the virus!

Many of us begged the Government not to relax the COVID-19 containment measures at this time. Our percentage positivity rate was too high, our vaccination rate was way too low, many were not adhering to the anti-COVID-19 protocols, our hospitals were near capacity, we believed that the Delta variant was here (even before confirmation); we were extremely vulnerable. But the entertainment sector was crying out for relief. The government admitted that they were fully aware that the number of COVID-19 infections and hospitalisations (including the resultant deaths) would escalate, and they knew that the number of cases were already on the rise, yet, shockingly, they relaxed the containment measures anyway!

As predicted, all hell broke loose right on cue. We have a meteoric rise in cases, increased percentage positivity rate, increased hospitalisations, and increased deaths. This third wave was the result of human activity, facilitated by the easing up of restrictions, which led to a smorgasbord of entertainment events and carousing. Every wave of infection develops a momentum that keeps them going for weeks or months.

POLITICS BEFORE POLICIES

Once again, the political tail wagged the democratic dog. Appeasement superseded responsible leadership. Livelihood trumped lives. Politics came before policies; the wants of the few outshone the needs of the many. The genie was out of the bottle, lives were changed, lives were lost; things will never be the same. And, to add insult to injury, it was all blamed on the populace – a populace already known for its inability to exercise the much-vaunted ‘personal responsibility’, a populace accustomed to indiscipline and courting anarchy, a populace that baulks against COVID-19 control measures. The Government absolved itself of any blame and is resolute in its refusal to apologise for its egregious indiscretion.

Additionally, our frontline medical and supporting staff put their lives and the lives of their family at very high risk whenever they go to work. They perform above and beyond the call of duty, and are often physically and mentally exhausted after every shift. It is callous, dismissive and ungrateful to tell a smitten frontline heathcare worker to go to the back of the line and wait, just like everybody else.

When asked about priority treatment for COVID-19-sickened staff, this was the official response: “In these matters, once it comes to care, then only the standard medical triage would apply. There wouldn’t be any predetermined priority list. That would be problematic.” That dictum was supported by our top health officials.

I have had repeated first-hand experiences of how celebrities and politicians are treated whenever they can’t fly out and must attend local public hospitals; they do not go to the back of any line, they are not triaged like everybody else, and they are on a predetermined priority list. There is a flurry of preparative activities and an overabundance of attending top doctors, top nurses, porters and technicians, along with senior admin staff, to facilitate their rapid and smooth processing, investigation and intervention.

The Government needs to prioritise the treatment of our healthcare heroes. It is cruel, disgraceful and unconscionable to offer them anything less than celebrity treatment if and when they fall in battle.

Garth A. Rattray is a medical doctor with a family practice. Email feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com and garthrattray@gmail.com.