For the past few weeks, one of the things that has really annoyed me about some of the comments on the coronavirus, is the emphasis placed on the fact that many of the people who have died have been elderly and were therefore 'going to die anyway' - as though they were all set to depart this life, just hanging around waiting for the best way to present itself. Actually, all of us are going to die anyway so this very dismissive sweeping aside of a couple of generations of people doesn't really hold much weight.
Then there's the other bit of the argument - the younger people who have died have all had some underlying health issue. I cannot believe that even if someone is asthmatic or has a weak heart, they would have 'died anyway' of the first dose of flu coming their way. I don't believe that someone like Boris Johnson would have ended up in ICU 'anyway' with normal flu. I don't believe that we would be seeing the number of doctors and nurses dying 'anyway', like it's a normal occurrence every year. Surely, everyone can see that this is more than just your average case of flu.
Today is a difficult day. I am lacking any sense of accomplishment and every day is beginning to feel exactly like the previous one. The death of the Bulawayo coronavirus patient raises a number of alarm bells. It seems he went to see his doctor with all the symptoms of the virus and was admitted to hospital when he did not get any better. He was put in a general ward and only tested for the virus when he was transferred to ICU and died before the results came back. Quite a number of people are therefore now at risk. I didn't know him, but I know people who did. It all feels a little too close to home.
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