Chronicles of the Virus Day 18
There is talk of extending the confinement, quarantine, or what you will, to the 25th of April. It will depend on how the contagions, and the overpowering of the hospitals, go these first days of April.
This is my favorite time of year. From the equinox, as the days grow lengthier and warmer, to the beginning of August, are the most beautiful days of the year. The only days I don't like are when the temperature rises too high above 30ºC. Other than that, they're beautiful. Beautiful to walk in, beautiful to go for a ride in, beautiful to wake up to. Easter is my favorite holiday only because it includes a week of vacation, warming temperatures, and the promise of summer ahead. This year, delight beyond my house and garden are on hold.
Against the beauty is the ugly scarring the virus is carving out in households and hearts. Late yesterday afternoon, my husband made the mistake of turning on the television and watching a news magazine. A woman was describing how heartbreaking it was to leave her mother to die alone. She described how the doctors at that hospital said they were denying ICU care to those who are older. In Spain's hot spots, such as Madrid and Catalunya, war medicine is being practiced, as in Italy.
Yes, it is happening, but I think stories like these should be kept to a minimum until after the worst is over. News stories should concentrate on those who recuperate, such as the oldest patient with the virus in Spain, that I think was in her nineties. Right now, many more people are still going to fall ill. It does them no good to know just how bad things are. Stress is a factor when one falls ill, and the stress of thinking you might die in such a situation is not helpful. After this is over is when the spotlight on the tragedies can be shown, and, above all, on the incompetence.
At the beginning of the pandemia, the government declared that private hospitals were also to join the fray. But that really hasn't happened. In fact, a chain of private hospitals encouraged its staff to take vacations and time off. It even laid off some workers. Most, if not all, of the health care is coming from the public hospitals and the emergency hospitals set up in convention centers. And it's not enough.
It's not enough because in the last twenty years, conservative regional and national governments have kept cutting back the health care budget. Less hospital beds, less doctors, less nurses. Money was given to the private hospitals for shoring up sporadic needs during times of epidemics, such as the yearly flu season. Or to cut down on waiting times. And now, the decrease in public spending is showing itself as the system is overwhelmed.
When this is over, things must change. And one of those things is funding of health care. Both health care and education are the pillars of a functioning society. There can be no shortcuts, no cutting of corners, no depending on the market, in those areas. Not if we want to be prepared for all that life can throw at us, both personally and as a society.
Around the world, though, people have come together to help each other, in one way or another. There's a video with clips from different countries showing people playing music, playing bingo, doing exercise, applauding the health care workers, and putting up notes of help offers for those who can't go out. In the end, we'll get through this together, and we'll be the stronger for it.
Life continues.
This is my favorite time of year. From the equinox, as the days grow lengthier and warmer, to the beginning of August, are the most beautiful days of the year. The only days I don't like are when the temperature rises too high above 30ºC. Other than that, they're beautiful. Beautiful to walk in, beautiful to go for a ride in, beautiful to wake up to. Easter is my favorite holiday only because it includes a week of vacation, warming temperatures, and the promise of summer ahead. This year, delight beyond my house and garden are on hold.
Against the beauty is the ugly scarring the virus is carving out in households and hearts. Late yesterday afternoon, my husband made the mistake of turning on the television and watching a news magazine. A woman was describing how heartbreaking it was to leave her mother to die alone. She described how the doctors at that hospital said they were denying ICU care to those who are older. In Spain's hot spots, such as Madrid and Catalunya, war medicine is being practiced, as in Italy.
Yes, it is happening, but I think stories like these should be kept to a minimum until after the worst is over. News stories should concentrate on those who recuperate, such as the oldest patient with the virus in Spain, that I think was in her nineties. Right now, many more people are still going to fall ill. It does them no good to know just how bad things are. Stress is a factor when one falls ill, and the stress of thinking you might die in such a situation is not helpful. After this is over is when the spotlight on the tragedies can be shown, and, above all, on the incompetence.
At the beginning of the pandemia, the government declared that private hospitals were also to join the fray. But that really hasn't happened. In fact, a chain of private hospitals encouraged its staff to take vacations and time off. It even laid off some workers. Most, if not all, of the health care is coming from the public hospitals and the emergency hospitals set up in convention centers. And it's not enough.
It's not enough because in the last twenty years, conservative regional and national governments have kept cutting back the health care budget. Less hospital beds, less doctors, less nurses. Money was given to the private hospitals for shoring up sporadic needs during times of epidemics, such as the yearly flu season. Or to cut down on waiting times. And now, the decrease in public spending is showing itself as the system is overwhelmed.
When this is over, things must change. And one of those things is funding of health care. Both health care and education are the pillars of a functioning society. There can be no shortcuts, no cutting of corners, no depending on the market, in those areas. Not if we want to be prepared for all that life can throw at us, both personally and as a society.
Around the world, though, people have come together to help each other, in one way or another. There's a video with clips from different countries showing people playing music, playing bingo, doing exercise, applauding the health care workers, and putting up notes of help offers for those who can't go out. In the end, we'll get through this together, and we'll be the stronger for it.
Life continues.
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