I was sent the link to this display of 34 health care workers coming off their shifts. One is posted at the top of this page. We, as a country, need to recognize health care workers as important, and serving, just like our military soldiers, our police, our fire fighters. They protect us and serve beyond the call of duty when needed. And they risk their lives in times like these. Indeed, many are getting COVID-19 from their work.
“These are the faces of combat. These are the faces I saw in Vietnam of soldiers coming back from combat.” - A Vietnam war veteran.
https://www.boredpanda.com/doctors-nurses-photos-fighting-coronavirus/
Locally, St. Joseph Hospital has only a week’s worth of Personal Protection Equipment (PPE). As Dr. Lin has told us, there are suppliers who have the equipment and are only waiting for a phone call placing orders. But our hospital seems attached to its traditional suppliers and are glued to their standard procedures. Same is true for the Whatcom County Public Health Department - one week of equipment - which the director told us can be reduced to three days-worth with one incident.
We are all in this together. Many locals are hand-making masks and PPE items for our health workers. The question is - why isn’t our hospital and health department calling on local suppliers, and in fact manufacturers, that have PPE items available?
