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“We are sure you have nCoV, do not try to enter the building,” the neighbor yelled at Sanjibani Panigrahi, a doctor at a hospital in India.
In the context of the increasingly difficult war against Covid-19, healthcare workers around the world are being praised for their work, regardless of time and danger, to protect the lives of others. However, in Mexico, Colombia, India, the Philippines, Australia and some other countries, doctors face discrimination, even being attacked, because people fear they are germs. sick
The aggressors are only a minority in the community. However, the Mexican authorities were so concerned that they decided to arrange special transportation for the nurses. In some areas of Australia, hospitals urge employees not to wear medical uniforms in public to avoid being attacked.
Last week, Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte also had to keep an eye on police to protect the medical team after reports of violent incidents, including a hospital employee throwing bleach in his face. This hostility is said to be shocking to healthcare workers who are extremely stressed due to a lack of protective equipment, many of whom die from nCoV infection.
Health workers protested the protective equipment to treat Covid-19 patients in Mexico City, Mexico, on March 31. Photos: Reuters.
“I understand people’s fears, but it is not okay to mistreat doctors. We also face higher risks than they do,” said Panigrahi, a doctor from the city of Surat in western India. telephone interview
In the Panigrahi case, the harassment only ended after the police and local authorities intervened. His neighbors apologized and explained that they were scared of the news about nCoV. However, many other healthcare workers in India still have to escape stigma.
The Delhi Doctors Association has reported to the government on the situation of health workers expelled by owners due to concerns about their jobs. “Many doctors now roam the streets with that material, there is nowhere to go,” the association said.
“It is extremely painful. All anti-Covid-19 doctors and staff are taking every precaution to ensure that they are not carriers of the disease,” said the Indian Minister of Health. Harsh Vardhan wrote on Twitter after reporting on the doctors’ circumstances.
Authorities say the attacks reflect some people’s ignorance of nCoV and strict hospital procedures to prevent the virus from spreading.
One of the shocking incidents occurred last week in Candelaria city, Quezon province, Philippines, when a man was accused of shooting an ambulance driver at Peter Paul Medical Center for fear the vehicle would do so. spread the virus.
Peter Paul Medical Center said the driver was carrying medical personnel, not Covid-19 patients. “In addition, proper cleaning and disinfection of vehicles is done regularly,” the center said. The driver survived and injured his finger.
The attacks also appear scattered in other parts of the world, including the United States. An unidentified nurse in Chicago, Illinois said last week that a man on a bus hit her in the face and accused her of spreading the virus.
“On the way to and from work, I often see people walking away from me, not just because of community segregation rules. I think they are concerned that any healthcare worker has been infected with the virus,” he said. . He said
In fear of harassing, people not only attacked medical personnel, but also sabotaged medical facilities. In the city of Abidjan, Ivory Coast, protesters on April 6 attempted to crush an under construction nCoV testing center. The video on social media shows that the boards were removed from the building, leading the police to use tear gas to disperse.
Some people responded to the press that they did not want the test facility to be located too close to residential areas. “They want to kill us,” said one resident. Ivory Coast officials explained that the center was not even intended to treat patients with Covid-19, but to test it.
Experts fear that attacks and insults threaten to frustrate the team of doctors and nurses when they need it most. “If healthcare workers continue to be mistreated, more and more people will stop doing so, jeopardizing the healthcare system,” said Reigner Antiquera, president of the coalition of young nurse leaders and supporters. in the Philippines, warning.
Protesters demolish a field hospital under construction to treat Covid-19 patients in Abidjan, Ivory Coast on April 6. Photos: Reuters.
In Mexico, distrust of health workers was so widespread that many did not dare to wear uniforms for work. María Luisa Castillo, a veteran nurse with 30 years of experience, is extremely proud of her white clothing. However, one afternoon after completing the shift on duty at the Civil Hospital in the city of Guadalajara, Jalisco state, he got her into trouble again.
When the bus was about to reach the waiting point where Castillo was stopped, she tried to wave her hand. However, the car passed quickly and stopped at a point above to pick up passengers. “Obviously they don’t want me,” said the 51-year-old man.
Castillo is one of the nurses in the state of Jalisco who has filed a complaint with the government about discrimination and abuse in recent weeks. In response, local officials decided to bring the nurses free of charge and provide them with masks. In Durango, in northwestern Mexico, authorities also called bus companies to explain that there was no risk of transporting medical personnel.
“As we see, when the nurses in Italy leave their home to go to work, everyone applauds. And the situation here is very sad,” said Fernando Ríos Quiñones, spokesman for the local health agency. for good He said that the medical staff would be taken on a special bus and offered the taxi drivers a 30% discount for them.
Sandra Aleman, a nurse in the city of San Luis Potosí, Mexico, was once advised not to wear uniforms in public. However, on April 3, she was still dressed in a white outfit when she was driving to work for a night shift.
On the way to the hospital, Alemán stopped the car at a convenience store to buy coffee. The 32-year-old woman related that when she left, several children threw juice at her and shouted “Covid! Covid!”
Aleman scolds the children, but is later slapped by his mother. While trying to run away, he fell and broke his finger. The incident made Aleman fearful of wearing uniforms in public, something he had never experienced in 9 years of work. However, Alemán said he still wants to continue the work.
“I will come back after recovering,” Aleman said.
Anh Ngoc (The O Washington Post)
