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‘The Government Strategy is a Shambles:’ UK Doctor Speaks Out on the Coronavirus
An NHS Frontline Physician Describes What It’s Like to Fight Against COVID19- and Highlights the Hypocrisy in Clapping for the Health Service by Yasmine El-Geressi Even before the coronavirus hit the Britain, exhaustion, anxiety, and stress were already endemic in the UK’s overstretched National Health Service. Then came the government’s mishandling of the crisis, which has left health workers unprotected in battlefield conditions due to widespread shortages of personal protective gear and testing. Now, there’s festering anger among health professionals who for their safety and the safety of their patients. The virus has also changed their relationships with their patients, co-workers and families, and some are struggling under the psychological weight of the crisis. I conducted an interview with an NHS physician who requested anonymity to speak freely. The doctor’s remarks have been edited for clarity and brevity
varies across trusts. Many live with vulnerable adults themselves and therefore risk exposing their loved ones to the virus. Others have chosen to completely isolate themselves from their families for months to keep them safe. Meanwhile, on duty we are constantly dealing with physically and mentally demanding situations, whether that’s breaking bad news to families who couldn’t visit sick relatives due to government guidance, or witnessing fit and well patients deteriorate rapidly deteriorate after illness onset. Understandably, this puts all healthcare professionals under enormous mental and psychological strain. It is important to note that much of the workforce are classified as junior doctors, many of whom are between the ages of 24 and 35. Having these highly traumatic events unfolding in front of you every single day for months is enough to exacerbate and ruin anyone’s mental health.
Can you give us some insight into how you and your colleagues are feeling right now?
Do healthcare workers have enough personal protective equipment (PPE)?
Feelings of exhaustion, stress and anxiety are palpable among doctors and nurses in hospitals. It is also not unusual for us to be working 7 consecutive -12hour on call shifts, although this
The availability of PPE can vary from trust to trust, but I am aware of many that have had to depend on the goodwill of volunteers to make the scrubs that we so desperately need to make up for shortages due
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29/05/20
