News that 40 healthcare workers at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) contracted the deadly novel coronavirus (COVID-19) must force a serious reckoning in the society. These are frontline workers providing an essential service. When the nurses started the protest for Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), risk allowance and increased salary, some in society were quick to denounce them, label their protest political, and accuse the workers of breaking the Essential Services Act.
The narrow minded politics, and those who refuse to see past the proverbial blinkers, ignore the consequential necessity of protecting healthcare workers. Some are failing to appreciate the critical service these workers provide and it is important to protect them in order that they can protect the society. They fail to see past the counterproductive desire to score cheap political points, point fingers and threaten healthcare workers. They refuse to join with the affected workers and caring citizens in asking the government to move with urgency and resolve the problems.
Too many continue to be silent at a time when they should be speaking out. Too many continue to muzzle themselves because they think it is political payback time and/or the frontline workers are of no interest to them. Too many have grown greedy and are salivating at the prospect of financial reward, be it job, contract, etc, that could come to them for remaining silent and giving tacit support to the government mishandling of the situation. Too many are supporting the government’s excuse that the Essential Services Act is not being obeyed by the workers, and the government is likely to pursue legal action, without telling the government they have created the climate for the problem.
These frontline workers are the very citizens they will have to meet, even for the smallest of care. These are the workers who are putting their lives at risk to provide care for all of us when COVID-19 is raging and its poor management could lead to an epidemic here. The government has still not gotten its act together in battling the virus and spread.
The World Health Organisation warns the “number of secondary infections generated from one infected individual is understood to be between 2 and 2.5 for COVID-19 virus, higher than for influenza.” This is alarming! The government has to reckon with itself that it is not doing well eliminating the disease, particularly given there is no approved vaccination. Since August 2, when it took office, it has to be admitted in less than three months Guyana is facing serious challenges managing the virus.
With a population of approximately 750,000, no serious mass testing, more than 3000 positive cases and over 100 deaths, Guyana’s record in battling the pandemic is abysmal. These are the realities healthcare workers and their families are exposed to, every single day. These are the dangers the government is exposing its frontline workers to and by extension the society. It cannot be overemphasised there must be an acceptance on the government’s part that it is failing citizens and essential workers, such as healthcare and prison personnel who are working in high risk environments, exposed, unprotected and underpaid.
The Village Voice has repeatedly editorialised on the management of the pandemic because of its seriousness and the dire implications for the lives and socioeconomic condition of Guyanese, home and abroad. It cannot be repeated enough when the restricted population (e.g. prisoners) and general population, including essential workers, are contracting COVID-19 at the present alarming rate Guyana is in crisis. It is our belief better can be done and the newspaper will continue to advocate for better. Remaining silent or being a bystander is not an option. All are involved and all will be consumed.
Government must give the frontline workers what they need to safely do their job. Their safety is just as important as the politicians or even more because they are the first contact of the sick to receive care. The money must be found, even if it means cutting salaries of the president and ministers or foregoing buying vehicles and repainting buildings. There is a healthcare crisis on our hands and it must be fixed, post haste! Critical to fixing it is attending to the welfare of essential workers.
