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I've been thinking a lot about this article from the summer: "Physicians aren't 'burning out.' They're suffering from moral injury." https://www.statnews.com/2018/07/26/physicians-not-burning-out-they-are-suffering-moral-injury/
It's not just physicians. I think most of us are in this boat, witnessing the negligence and selfishness of those in power.
Journalist Diane Silver describes moral injury as “a deep soul wound that pierces a person’s identity, sense of morality, and relationship to society.”
Journalist Diane Silver describes moral injury as “a deep soul wound that pierces a person’s identity, sense of morality, and relationship to society.”
This injury *will not* be fixed by the vaccine or by a "return to normal." Much of American society has learned (if they didn't already know) that society isn't invested in us. American society has been unmasked to be cruel, selfish, ignorant, and for the rich.
After the vaccine, many doctors and nurses won't just bounce back. They have been in crisis for too long, have been patching holes in a failing/failed system with their bodies. They have seen too many die, given too much of their mental and physical health.
After the vaccine, education won't "go back to normal." Too many kids have been abandoned or harmed by the cobbled-together systems that have been underfunded for decades. We're seeing a generation of learners become even more stratified and underfunded than before.
After the vaccine, the millions of people who were pushed out of the workforce aren't going to just bounce into new jobs. The businesses that closed won't just reopen. Wages won't just recover. Many of these changes are already permanent.
The vaccine doesn't treat the enormous mental health crisis we're in. Isolated elders, parents who are chronically overworked, kids who are depressed and without social outlets. People who have fallen into despair and addiction.
All of this can only be fixed by our government stepping up and taking concrete action to equalize our society. The states can't do it. Local areas can't do it. We need our government to invest real money in its citizens. Because these issues are systemic and chronic.
When the rich can get the vaccine first, our society is profoundly broken. Many Americans feel rightfully abandoned in favor of the rich and corporations. The responsibility to fix this lies at the hands of the government. We should be a government for the people, by the people.
