YOURSAY | ‘The Covid-19 frontliners need our understanding and empathy.’

'Burnt out' doctor speaks up, urges others to do the same for better treatment

Constitution Is Supreme: In my opinion, anyone with friends or relatives working in general hospitals, especially the Covid-19 hospitals, will know that what Sungai Buloh Hospital’s Dr Mustafa Kamal shared is indeed the truth.

I was told of a hospital where the doctors are overworked, exhausted, and sometimes need to buy their own personal protection equipment (PPE). Lately, some medical staff were infected and one building block was closed due to a Covid-19 case.

I empathised with them and wished to urge Health director-general Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah to stop churning out the daily technical report. While the report might be good for technical team analysis and evaluation to formulate a strategy to manage and contain the pandemic, it is meaningless to us laypeople.

We, the public, do not need to know the many different clusters (and perhaps many of us may not understand or be interested to know about them). What we want to know is just the number of cases detected at each jalan and taman. Period.

Giving the jalan and taman will not disclose the identity of the patient. The advantage will be raising the awareness and urgency of people staying around the area to take extra precautionary measures and a better chance to get them to stay at home.

Secondly, occasionally, go to the ground to verify that the daily reports you received represent the true situation. Chances are you may find some misrepresentation, especially on the supply of quality and suitable PPE to the frontliners; and preventing and minimising long working hours (labour law says no employee shall work more than 12 hours a day). No excuse nor justification is acceptable for such failure, if any.

And to Health Minister Dr Adham Baba, Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin and the rest of the cabinet ministers, do please let the frontliners feel your compassion and caring by making statements that will help to relieve the frontliners' stress and frustration, as well as motivating them to continue doing their best to save lives and save Malaysia.

Thirdly, to all the laypeople out there, please stay at home when you don't need to to help cut the infection chain. Socialising and holidaying could wait. Saving lives cannot wait.

Cynic: How long has this medical officer been working in the government sector? Judging from Dr Mustafa’s age (27), it couldn't have been long. He is a young, energetic and probably zealous doctor mentally and physically fit to be a frontliner in this war against Covid-19.

For him to be burnt out showed the extent to which this pandemic has impacted the lives of frontliners in this country, from the garbage collector to the Covid-19 ward doctors. And every one of them is doing his or her duty to the best of one's ability.

These people need our understanding and empathy. We common folks do that, but it doesn't seem to be coming from those in power and who can do something about it.

My heart goes out to this young man. I appeal to the higher-ups to accord this young man the humane treatment he deserves.

Falcon: Dr Mustafa, what an embarrassment you are. Addressing this pandemic is not just a Malaysian dilemma but a global one.

All over the world, the medical fraternity is called out to excel and respond to these challenges. Everyone in this ecosystem of combating Covid pandemic is called upon to respond beyond the call to duty or the profession.

You are not the only person frustrated, burnt-out, or seeking assistance but sadly and shockingly the only one who took it to the social media, complaining like a spoiled child, both flawed and embarrassing.

So why did you take up medicine, in the first place?

ScarletGuppy3254: @Falcon. I think, unless we have been in his position month after month and went through what Dr Mustafa has been through, we should not be so quick to judge or be so judgemental.

Doctors and nurses are human too. And we all have our breaking point. Some empathy for our beleaguered frontline staff will not go amiss here.

Anonymous_3f4b: We are at war with Covid-19. Doctors in wartime and war zones forego all comforts of home and personal life to be with the soldiers and civilians (nurses and patients) in disaster areas.

They are lucky to have a job and earn salaries when thousands of others are left without jobs and income and are locked in.

Doctors choose their profession, and they must adapt to prevailing circumstances. That is their calling and honour, and they must have the aptitude and fortitude to struggle, persevere and remain true to their Hippocratic oath for the betterment of society.

FairMalaysian: @3f4b, so, what you are trying to say is doctors are not human beings but fitted with superhero gadgets to be that extraordinary person you wish them to be. Get real mate.

Solo: If it is just one person complaining, I might say it is an isolated case. But if there are multiple cases, then the system is wrong and needs fixing soonest.

Other countries are also reporting exhausted doctors and nurses because of the huge increase in the number of patients and the increased complexity of each case.

When one doctor or nurse goes down, the ones left will need to do extra work on top of the already heavy workload. I see the system breaking down.

Fuminghot: While doctors and frontliners are slogging it out, our YBs and ministers are enjoying ‘emergency leave’ till August 2021, not that they worked much in 2020.

Throughout the Perikatan Nasional (PN) rule, almost all politicians are enjoying their big, fat paycheques. They should cut their salaries and send food and other supplies to the frontliners who are suffering physically and mentally.

Hey, menteri, be compassionate. Do you need such big, fat pay cheques during a crisis like this?

My2cen: If the Health Ministry dismisses all the doctors’ complaints, then there will be no one left to care for patients at all.

These doctors are willing to work; they are just asking for time to rest in between and food while on duty - these should be provided without being asked.

They are not asking for awards or a mural painting. 

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