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I was listening to @today this morning (surprise surprise) and I was struck by an interview with a GP talking about the logistical difficulties of the vaccination programme
She said that the notice they were getting for the arrival of 1000 dose batches at the surgery was very tight (hours), and that made it hard to contact and get all their at risks through the doors.
Despite this, they are all up for it (as we would expect professional HCWs to be) and willing to work very long hours to achieve the targets. But the logistical teething troubles need ironing out fast.
But then she said something that struck me “I’m just worried that if the national targets aren’t met we (the GPs, HCWs etc) will be blamed’
So, it’s worth thinking, who WOULD blame these guys. And the answer to that is a real example of how far we have fallen as a respectful and supportive society.
Of course, she is scared of members of the general public. But why would they do this?
Well, we have a political class, exemplified in extremis by members of the current government, who will never shy away from an opportunity to shift the blame for their own failings on to those working tirelessly and thanklessly to deliver them or clear up the mess.
But then there are the clapping seal commentators in the media. The ones with radio shows, the ones with weekly columns, and of course the outlets that employ them. The ones who have always felt that public health services are a waste of money when they themselves aren’t using it
The ones who have claimed, or have enabled those that do claim, that this is all a hoax. That have used manipulated or cherry picked data out of context to substantiate their pre-existing biases dressed up as concern for freedom.
The ones who have given both air time and a credulous and frightened audience to those who troy out made-up simple answers to complex questions in order to undermine the very people we need to get us out of this. The ones who accuse the doctors and scientists of “wanting this”
And this results in the utter obscenity of people outside hospitals chanting at emergency HCWs that they are frauds while the health service is literally buckling under the strain.
These people know who they are, and we know who they are. And don’t underestimate how much of our current predicament has been exacerbated by them. When there is the inevitable public inquiry, I hope some of these people have to justify themselves publicly under oath.
