From the Heart of Healthcare Employee

Healthcare professionals are angels right here on Earth.

I’m only speaking on the behalf of us that have been working front lines since the start of the COVID pandemic in 2020.

Yes, I know it’s been a tough transition for us all, but as for the healthcare world…it lies in shambles. Though we have faced difficult situations before, this time we are challenged.

As if that isn’t enough, now we are fighting COVID AND vaccine mandates so we won’t be yesterday’s heroes & tomorrow’s unemployed.

It seems like we just can’t win!

No one knows what we go through, but…

Let me try to explain:

Doctors are overwhelmed.

Facilities are understaffed.

Nurses are overworked.

Radiologists are saturated with orders.

Insurance companies are inundated with claims.

Aides are underappreciated.

Respiratory therapists are overloaded.

Hospital beds are unavailable.

Ventilation machines are maximized.

We are tired.

We are irritable.

We want to scream.

We want to cry.

We are hot under these respirators.

We can’t breathe.

We are defeated.

We feel helpless.

We have lost track of time.

We can barely remember the days.

Our smiles have faded.

Our feet hurt.

Our eyes are tied.

Our backs aches.

Our legs cramp.

Our heads throb.

Our shoulders are tense.

Our energy is low.

Our stress is high.

Our spirits are down.

Our blood pressure is up.

Our bladders are full.

Our stomachs are empty.

Our bodies are weak, but our care is strong.

Our sleep is interrupted.

Our hair isn’t done.

Our houses are unkept.

Our personal lives are almost nonexistent.

Our time with our own families are distanced & limited.

Our relationships are strained.

Our parenting is sporadic.

Our patients & coworkers are our family now.

Our hours on the clock are boundless.

Our checks never add up to the amount of hours & service we put in.

We are having to gown & regown time & time again.

Patient after patient.

Active cases & numbers are growing.

Supplies are depleting.

We are frustrated because it’s only getting worse.

We are apprehensive about vaccines that offered a sense of false hope.

We are heartbroken because many of these patients are sick & may possibly die alone.

We are anxious every time we step in a room with a COVID positive patient.

We understand they don’t feel well & don’t want to rush them; but we are concerned about our own health & want more than anything to provide the care we are required to & leave as quickly so we don’t have prolonged exposure.

We feel guilty when someone dies & question ourselves about what we could have done to prevent that outcome.

We are burdened when we have to make that phone call to families.

We feel unworthy of denying access to our “patient” because we realize they are mothers, fathers, sons, daughters, sisters, brothers…

We are concerned about being the host for the transmission of COVID to immunocomprised patients (yes, even with the vaccine).

We are committed, but we are cautious.

We are unsettled & perturbed that COVID continues to mutate.

We ask the question, “how much longer?”

We answer the question, “how much longer?

And while the world is arguing over a vaccine, we are trying to find the will & strength to keep going.

We want to quit, but we can’t give up.

We are essential.

And chances are, if we had a chance to choose differently, we would still do this all again.

We sacrifice our lives to save the life of someone else.

This isn’t a career, it’s a calling.

Healthcare is who we are, not what we do!