The inhumane and inconsistent world of COVID

I write in response to your article “Despairing doctor’s plea to Premier on lockdown” (30/9) to share my despair at being unable to visit my 74-year-old mum who is in hospital in Perth after having been diagnosed with a mass on her brain. My mum’s deterioration has been fast. In a week she can no longer get out of bed, she is not talking, just moaning in pain and asking for her mum.

I am denied entry, despite having an exempt traveller pass, because I have come from the Northern Territory, which has no active cases of COVID, while my sister, who is from Western Australia, which has active cases, is permitted to visit.

This anomaly, insisted on by the hospital administration in what I believe is an abuse of power, is causing undue stress and anxiety. I may have missed my last opportunity to have a conversation with mum. I have been treated worse than a criminal and I am on the edge of panic. I feel the hospital’s decision will have a lasting effect on me when it is bad enough having to face up to mum’s illness.

The hospital said if my mum’s condition changes they will reassess the situation. But my mum doesn’t have her life in front of her anymore. There is no logic left and the way people are being treated during COVID makes me ashamed to be part of the human race.

Kathy Gardiner, Collie, WA

As a Premier who cared enough about mental health to hold a royal commission into Victoria’s mental health system, it is surprising that Daniel Andrews can now turn a blind eye to children’s “mental anguish, despair and suicidal thoughts” due to the continuing lockdown (“Despairing doctor’s plea to Premier on lockdown”, 30/9).

As Dr Stacey Harris revealed, she has had to prescribe antidepressants for 12 to 15-year-olds, but access to mental health professionals is “now almost impossible and/or the wait is too long”. That such young people whose brains aren’t fully developed are taking this medication seems tragic, demanding Andrews’ urgent attention and an end to this lockdown.

Moreover, a friend of mine, an ICU nurse in a large Melbourne public hospital, told me a couple of days ago that staff are now more concerned about the increasing number of self-harming patients presenting to emergency than they are about COVID. Those presenting are across all age groups.

It is imperative the Premier listen to Dr Harris and the nine other doctors to ensure young people can resume social normalcy before another great crisis, if it’s not already, presents.

Millions of dollars invested in the mental health system is certainly helpful, but seeing friends and family and returning to school would cost nothing and be far more therapeutic than a packet of pills.

Paulyne Pogorelske, E. Melbourne, Vic

My small family business will face the dual problem of reduced income and increased costs for the foreseeable future. During the shutdown (and we will be one of the last industries to open) we had a 100 per cent loss of income. JobKeeper enabled us to keep our staff on the books. We had to use our savings to pay them before we were reimbursed. We also had to pay all utilities and outgoings to the landlord.

We will start our business with our client numbers where they were 18 months ago. The interest on our loan will increase when the deferral period ends, our rent, which has been amortised, will also rise, yet our income will be reduced. Even with the JobKeeper extension we will need to start paying super again and topping up wages when shift hours increase to normal. The next six months will be extremely challenging for us without ongoing support.

Greg Hodge, small business owner, Cranbourne West, Vic

I note that the former minister for health in Victoria has commented that the state is in good shape to achieve “eradication” of the virus. Her comment was followed by the Premier stating that “suppression” is the strategy being followed.

However, if that is the case why do we have a stated target of zero cases for 28 days for the final step? NSW has not achieved the level required but continues to operate.

This is another example of the Premier’s “spin”. His statements need to be clarified because what he says and what he does are two different things.

Stephen Clarke, Kew, Vic