Thread by @MariBrighe

I know I’ve said this before, but:

We are absolutely not prepared for the aftermath of the collective trauma experienced by healthcare workers during this pandemic.

My colleagues across functional areas and allied professions are so far beyond their limits. Not just doctors and nurses, but laboratory, radiology, respiratory therapy, transport, pharmacy, housekeeping, nutrition, physical plant, clerics, etc. It’s ALL OF US.

It’s also important to understand that most healthcare & hospital workers are women. Many are BIPOC and/or immigrants. Many of us are from poor/working class backgrounds bc healthcare was an accessible path to employment stability/benefits.

We’re people the world tends to ignore

Healthcare itself is still largely blue collar in character. It’s shift work with mandatory weekends, holidays, overtime, and on-call. Many hospitals make strong efforts to quash labor organizing. Our time off is often not great. It’s physically demanding and dangerous.

Even in the best of times, healthcare workers are basically paid to deal with things that the rest of society wants to avoid...tragedy, sickness, people at their worst moments, fluids, smells, and the human body at its most real & mortal.

We are society’s shield.

Also, unless you have MD after your name or “director” or “vice-president” in your title, healthcare professionals aren’t exactly getting rich— contrary to opinion. Our pay varies from marginal (for clerical/support/housekeeping) to “acceptably average” for certified professions.

People are absolutely going to flee the healthcare world after all this if they can. We are feeling ignored and unsupported while we’re literally risking our lives. We face abuse and harassment from the COVID deniers when we talk about our experiences.

It’s unacceptable.

Healthcare workers need more than lip service & performative support.

We need protections, compensation, rest, & a real plan to address the psychological & physical aftermath of this crisis.

The brunt of Trump & the GOP’s policy failure fallout is landing on us & no one cares