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Editorial: We’re within sight of 50k cases but we all knew this was coming

The horror stories we saw emerging out of Italy 18 months ago as thousands of people tested positive daily to “the coronavirus’’ are being replicated right here in Queensland, writes The Editor.

Queensland to delay return of school by two weeks

This plague is now upon us, without question.

The horror stories we saw emerging out of Italy 18 months ago as thousands of people tested positive daily to “the coronavirus’’ are being replicated right here in Queensland.

Our brothers, sisters, husbands wives and kids are receiving news of a positive Covid test and many of us are now living in isolation.

This week we have come within sight of 50,000 confirmed infections as the single digit daily infection rates of a few weeks ago disappear into our rear-view mirrors.

Chief health officer John Gerrard says hospital admissions fuelled by the Omicron wave are set to peak in their thousands.

The next few weeks are going to test our resolve and our strength as a community.

Many of us will become infected and suffer through a period of discomfort and outright physical pain, even if we are vaccinated.

Health workers at a pop up COVID-19 testing clinic in Brisbane in November. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Dan Peled
Health workers at a pop up COVID-19 testing clinic in Brisbane in November. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Dan Peled

But we all knew this was coming.

We knew this massive outbreak was inevitable after we had achieved strong enough vaccination rates to make the decision to open up our borders and resume the business of living out our lives in a free country.

And we would do well to remember during this trying time just how lucky we are to be citizens of that country.

A century of prosperity fused with good stewardship from largely corruption-free governments has led to the creation of a world-class health system envied around the globe.

It has its defects which we should continue to monitor and expose with a view to improvement.

But if you were to ask yourself what other country in the world you would prefer to be in aside from Australia when you receive that positive Covid test, you might struggle to come up with an answer.

Across Asia, Africa and even parts of the Americas people are struggling to secure even basic medicines to combat this pandemic while the prospect of a clean and closely monitored bed in a well-equipped hospital ward is simply out of the question for hundreds of millions of people.

This crisis should crystallise within our collective consciousness the fact that our health system is a precious gift we received from previous generations, and one we should nurture and protect for future generations.

Yet those employed on its front lines are now being tested in what might be described as some form of gruelling, medical boot camp.

“Cry if you need,’’ was one directive which came out this week from a unit manager at the QEII Jubilee Hospital, and many Queensland Health workers will no doubt prove themselves dutiful employees and follow the advice.

The hospital is at Tier 3, two steps from Tier 5 when the spread of the virus exceeds capacity, and staffing is at a minimum with a poor patient to staff ratio.

But we can be certain that almost none of our health workers will shirk responsibility and refuse to perform their duties.

The vocational aspect of a job with Queensland Health has been demonstrated repeatedly over the decades.

These workers will continue meeting the extraordinary demands placed upon them until the point that they are faced with their own positive tests and are forced to retire from the field of battle.

We might ponder on this as we line up for Covid tests, facing hours of delay and sometimes taking out our frustrations on others with snipes and criticisms and, regrettably, outright violence, such as the alleged road rage incident which occurred this week on Lytton Road.

Our health workers are facing these sorts of pressures every working day, and will continue to do so in the weeks ahead, some working around the clock, putting their duties ahead of their own personal and family responsibilities.

The least we can do is face our own pressures, setbacks and difficulties with good grace.

And perhaps, when we are dealing directly with health workers as so many of us will in the weeks ahead as this current wave of Covid reaches its predicted peak of infections, we might offer them a few quiet words of praise, encouragement and gratitude.

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Original URL: https://www.couriermail.com.au/news/opinion/editorial-were-within-site-of-50k-cases-but-we-all-knew-this-was-coming/news-story/4b1e100887cc894aea4b83f741d1cf8a