Another Covid-19 Threat: Health Care Workers Under Attack

A healthcare worker at a testing facility collects samples for the coronavirus at Mimar Sinan State Hospital, Buyukcekmece district in Istanbul, Turkey. Credit: UNDP Turkey/Levent KuluBy Joe Amon and Christina WillePHILADELPHIA, US, Mar 3 2021 (IPS) In the first months of the COVID-19 pandemic, at a certain hour of the evening, people in cities around the world opened their windows or stood on their rooftops and banged pots and rang bells. As the coronavirus spread and the number of deaths mounted, it was a moment for people distancing themselves from others to show solidarity and appreciation for the heroic work of health workers. But even as health workers were being celebrated by some, others attacked them. In 400 incidents last year around the globe, health workers were attacked, clinics, hospitals and COVID-19 testing facilities were targeted, or public health officials were threatened. Fear, misinformation and conspiracy theories flourished alongside frustration with the actions and inaction by governments to stem the pandemic and address the massive social and economic upheaval that accompanied it. At the same time, police and security forces arrested and assaulted health workers for protesting governments’ inadequate responses to the pandemic. Health workers were assaulted by people who feared they were spreading the disease, and health facilities treating patients with COVID-19 were targeted These incidents, and others, are documented in a newly released, interac...
Source: IPS Inter Press Service - Health - Category: International Medicine & Public Health Authors: Tags: Global Headlines Health TerraViva United Nations Source Type: news