Life of a covid worker, is based on a personal experience about a doctor and other health workers who went above and beyond the call of duty.
It all began in late 2019,
When the entire world was affected by the deadly virus that created a havoc across nations.
The Journey and life of a covid worker:
Having lived in India for close to 15 years in Bangalore India, you tend to start getting immune to the environment.
But this was different. Covid spread across the sprawling city like wild fire which affected thousands of people.
The spread :
Hospitals and doctors were on high alert. Doctors and the hospital staff felt the chaos.
My journey as a doctor begins in a government setup when people start rushing with symptoms like breathlessness,cough and fatigue.
Hospitals started filling up with people with no place for new admissions with patients moving around without any knowledge.
Treatments with antibiotics were not helping everyone,rather they were scratching the surface.
Every department in the medical field got into action,finding a way to the cure.
You find high risk people getting admitted due to shortness of breath. They start gasping for breath for long inspite of oxygen being provided at 100 liters.
Treatment and hardships in the life of a covid worker:
To treat patients without the perfect knowledge of the treatment is even more harder and to see them die inspite of your best efforts made me feel hopeless.
Family’s start mourning outside the covid ward unaware that the virus is at large which further complicates things.
In the beginning of the spread of virus,the mortality rate was quite high wherein every 3rd or 4th patient use to die due to lack of oxygen.
The dead bodies of the covid patients were not be provided to the family due to spread of the virus
And the bodies were cremated far off or sealed to avoid any contact with the outside world.
My family on the other hand keep calling to know the status of my health and urging me to stay as far away from the patients, which was obviously impossible.
After a day’s hard work I return home tired and exhausted. Yet, still scared that I would unknowingly spread the virus to others in the family.
The entire country goes into lock down trying to figure out why such a devastating disease has destroyed millions of lives.
As a doctor,
I started gearing up my armor with a face shield, PPE kit, masks and gloves, trying to avoid any spread from our patients.
Cases start multiplying from a few hundred’s to thousands devastating the life around us.
Inspite of the protective gear worn by health staff,doctors and nurses become prey to the virus.
After the morning rounds,
Looking after the patients, we decide to remove our kits just to find out the sweat flowing down our bodies due to the claustrophobic feeling of wearing it.
Solution:
The WHO then finds some hope by providing information about antiviral drugs
It could alter the viruses genome and help patients heal from the deadly virus.
At first we thought there was hope but then patients start dying in hundreds. This kept everyone in dilemma as to what could heal it.
People across the city started wearing masks and maintaining distance from each other. This went on for a month till people started being reckless.
Cases were rising way beyond the expected mark with people not following the governments orders, thereby leading to widespread chaos among hospitals.
The worst was yet to come. Shortage of medical staff began when the infection spread to Doctors and healthcare staffs.
Patients started pouring in hundreds impacting every single aspect of one’s life. Non-availability of beds and medicines resulted in sending them to different hospitals.
The first wave hit thereby impacting millions of lives and the economy itself.
Treatments meant to heal the virus, tried all over the world.
Mild to moderate cases were being healed but the high risk cases end up dying.
People of low socio-economic status resort to all means by finding beds to accommodate their loves ones. Governments start constructing shelters for the poor with free food for all.
The wave finally started settling down after a brief period of close to 6 months and things were calming down.
People started getting immune as there were no vaccines during the time period. Thereby degrading its effect on the human body.
The end ( Life of a covid worker ) ?? :
- After coming out of a catastrophic situation that baffled the world with millions killed , there was silence on the streets for a good 3 months .
- It felt like people abandoned the city , with pollution reducing drastically to a new low .
- People eventually started venturing out , with cases of the first wave being dropped and the government giving permission to open establishments to the public .
What went wrong ? :
A lot of things changed soon after ! A glimpse of the 2nd wave was already on the horizon as people start becoming reckless about not following precautionary measures .
Individuals avoiding laws and safety measures.
As expected , cases begin to spurt across cities and the whole cycle starts repeating again .
The 2nd wave was devastating compared to the first , which led to mutation of the virus and mostly affected those who were not vaccinated .
People of age group of 60-70 years succumbed to death even after taking both the jabs of the vaccine .
Deaths:
Looking at close to 10-15 deaths everyday for a period of 3 months in the 2nd wave was more or less traumatizing because of less faculty, ICU beds and oxygen cylinders available to the public at hospitals .
Being doctors , it isn’t easy for us to console the public when they have lost some of the loved ones of the family due to covid-19 , as multiple deaths occurred almost every hour .
Inspite of all the traumatic experiences , people would still believe that covid was just a gimmick that doesn’t really exist in the real world and they prefer being reckless about it .
Finally !!
After a period of close to 3 months the cases start dwindling and we could see a glimpse of reduction of cases in the 2nd wave .
Indian government with hospitals around the world started immense production of vaccines.
The reduction of cases gave us some hope as to breathe peacefully after working for almost 10 to 12 hours a day . It was a sign that the worst is coming to an end ?? .
Will there be a third wave ??
Just when things started settling down , reports of another mutated variant named ” Omicron ” strikes the African nations creating widespread panic .
Studies and research have started to analyze the mutated disease.
Whether it could affect those vaccinated or if booster doses instigated.
or if it affects the elderly or are children at risk ?
These questions will only be answered over time . Lets hope people start acting a little responsible by following precautionary measures while going out to prevent the spread of the disease and to save humanity .
Thank you !!
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