COVID-19 Pandemic: Salute to the Healthcare Soldiers

Amidst the panic and mayhem caused by the coronavirus outbreak, the mood in most intensive care units is strange and somber. Caring for high numbers of patients, planning for providing this care, lab testing and diagnosis, lots of paperwork, and ICU teams pulling together because that is the need of the day. 

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Healthcare workers, especially those working in intensive care, are the real soldiers today. Every suitably qualified healthcare member is on their feet, trying to do their part and to contributing towards saving lives and making people feel better and stronger. Hard at work, these people are uncertain about what the next few weeks will bring. How many more patients will come in? How many of those will be elderly and frail, vulnerable to these conditions, and at a much greater risk than the rest of the population? As such, there is no cure but effective management of symptoms. How will the increasing number of patients be managed with limited resources? 

Things will continue to be tough, but as healthcare workers worldwide have already proven, they are not going to back down. But they need help. They need a backup workforce. They need more equipment. They need resources so that they can focus on making important decisions. They also have to ensure the wellbeing of their staff - both their physical health and their emotional state. Healthcare workers are trained to handle medical challenges, but they need the tools to be more effective. Labs are overwhelmed with tests that need to be done; there are more patients and fewer ventilators; there are families with questions and physicians in situations where they have to make on-the-spot decisions - decisions that might be difficult but that need to be taken nevertheless. 

A salute to all healthcare soldiers out there, staying firm and strong, pushing through with whatever each new day brings, and trying their best to satisfy all - patients, families, staff, and the media.