Healthcare workers are the heroes of today’s times as they play an important role in saving the lives of people from the virus. Still, we don’t care about the HEALTH-CARE to healthcare workers. While they are working on the frontlines with minimum protection and support from the society, they have to pay a high price for doing their job. Healthcare workers are suffering from the major risks of infection, anxiety, and being separated from their families. But slowly their condition is worsening as they are now facing social banishment, harassment, and assaults. Soon healthcare workers who are treating the patients may turn into patients themselves tomorrow because of the lack of protective personal equipment and regulations for their security all over the world.
Every healthcare worker is doing extra hours of work with little to no incentives. Once they reach the hospitals and put on the mask and gown, they have to work for at least eight hours without drinking water or taking a bathroom break because taking off their gears to do so can increase their chances of the infection. Normally, the guidelines suggest that a staff member or a healthcare worker should be exposed to COVID-19 patients for only four hours but the increasing number of patients and the small number of healthcare workers make it impossible to follow this rule.
According to WHO, the COVID-19 pandemic has affected more than 35,000 healthcare workers across the world. If this continues, the pandemic situation will get worse as every single healthcare is important right now. WHO emphasizes the proper use of personal protective equipment ( PPE) such as masks, face masks, gloves, and gowns to protect frontline healthcare personnel. Many healthcare workers have a little knowledge about how to use PPEs for self-protection and what precautionary methods to follow regarding them. Since coronavirus is new, there is a lot of confusion as to how to handle infected patients. To solve both these problems, WHo has created a team of COVID Crusaders. These people sensitize and keep an eye on the healthcare staff about following hygiene protocol during their work.
Unlike ventilators and PPEs which can be manufactured heavily and their shortages can be filled over time, doctors and healthcare workers cannot be made urgently or run at 100% capacity. So in the global response, it is time for the countries to step up and ensure the safety of the healthcare workers as much as the safety of the patients. Availability of adequate PPE is only the first step; other realistic steps need to be addressed, including canceling non-essential activities to maximize resources; providing food, rest and support to the family; and psychological assistance to ensure HEALTH-CARE to healthcare workers.
