Dear readers,
Time is flying by, and we are now almost in April.
As a nurse, March has become a very significant month for me. On 12.03.2020, COVID-19 was declared a pandemic outbreak in the United Kingdom. The last five years have changed my life as a nurse and as a private individual. I have no doubt that I am not the only one who feels the same.
How could we possibly forget the last five years and continue as if nothing has happened? Sadly, it often seems that we are all back on our hamster wheels and have more or less overcome the trauma of a global pandemic.
I shall never forget the timeline, especially the events between March 2020 and December 2022, when I really thought I would die. In April 2020, after working on COVID wards with insufficient protection (PPE), I caught the killer virus. Then, I infected my partner, and it nearly got us both. We are both healthcare workers and almost gave our lives because of government failure.
When I 'recovered' from COVID-19, I wrote an open letter, which I sent out to the world, standing up for us nurses. KNOCKING LOUDLY! "Hello, is anybody there in their cabinets?"
Have I been heard? I am still not sure.
It seems like governments have forgotten what we all went through. We had to go on strike after the 'end' of the pandemic; the shortage of nurses continues; cases of burn-out are as frequent as ever; nurses are battling in war zones, giving their lives as we speak. We are back on our hamster wheels until the next pandemic outbreak.
When will politicians around the world wake up and do EVERYTHING that is required for healthcare professionals? When will we be protected, cared for, and understood? Will it ever happen?
This month, I want to share that first open letter with you again. After five years, my words still feel relevant. WE ARE NOT CANNON FODDER! Not then, not now, not in the future.
Best wishes,
Sabine
April 2020
An open letter by Sabine Torgler (A German Nurse Working in the UK)
We are not cannon fodder!
You usually begin a letter with a salutation. But even then, I despair. How should I address those to whom I appeal?
'Dear Government,'
'Yours faithfully, yours ...'
This form of address does not fit with the feelings that I currently have as a nurse. Honour and respect are earned through appropriate actions, but I do not see them.
It is difficult for me to put into words what we nurses are going through all over the world.
I am one of many thousands who have had to care for COVID-19 patients with inadequate protective clothing in the past few weeks.
I am one of many thousands who cried bitterly at shift-end.
I felt defenseless and conflicted. I wouldn't have these feelings if we had our basic personal protective equipment (PPE):
gowns
gloves
appropriate masks (FFP2/FFP3)
visors
In today's high-tech medicine, these 4 components are basic protection and save lives - those of patients and mine. Every day, more and more nurses die needlessly in the world, caring for infected patients with inadequate PPE.
What are we asking for here? Nothing more than the basics!!!
No country in the world has managed to protect all its nurses within 4 months (since the pandemic broke out). Instead, governments worldwide are discussing who, where, when, and which production should start. These discussion processes take time, and we don't have that! Time is not on our side when we battle against something that is spreading rapidly. Action must be taken quickly. This is the only way we and our patients will not die.
When I chose the nursing profession 26 years ago, it was clear to me that I would care for patients suffering from highly infectious diseases. Until 4 weeks ago, I had never had a problem with this because until now, I have always had everything I needed to carry out professional care safely. Since Corona, my care world looks completely different, and it affects us nurses worldwide!
As a nurse, I am not a heroine because it is my job and my calling to care for people. The war terminology used by governments around the world towards us nurses has nothing to do with my nursing world. With the word "hero," I connect armies and soldiers. I am not a soldier.
When a career is chosen, a soldier accepts going to war and the possibility of losing his or her life. However, as a nurse, I did not decide to take up my vocation with the possibility of paying with my life because of a lack of adequate protective equipment. An army does not go to war with little or no basic defensive equipment!
We nurses don't want to pay for the failures of governments in our lives. We are not cannon fodder!
How dare you use us like this? Leave us so alone! Where is your conscience?
What is the use of 'COVID hazard protection funds' for us? My life is worth more than that.
We demand the basic protection of equipment that we are entitled to so that we can care for our COVID-19 patients safely and professionally.
We demand honesty from you and your ministries! Your so-called 'evidence-based' policies regarding PPE appear to be adapted to the deficiency situation: disposable masks + gowns could now be worn repeatedly for several days or even weeks. For us and our patients, this could mean a much higher risk of infection. That must not be obscured!
ACT FOR US! If we don't get support from our governments, care will collapse worldwide. We are already at the limit!
WE NEED YOUR CARE!
Sabine Torgler (RGN)
