Heroes of the Pandemic – Sylvia Byard
The Lyfe Magazine recognizes the struggle many of us are facing during this time. We Would like to take a moment each week to recognize someone who is working and helping others during this stressful period.
Each week we want to honor someone, to let everyone know there are genuine heroes in the world!
This week we honor Sylvia Byard!
Hi, my name is Sylvia and I’m a Registered Nurse and I’ve worked in healthcare for almost 10 years and five of them as an RN.
One of the biggest challenges that I’ve faced with this pandemic is personal safety. There are a lot of unknowns about COVID-19. Working in a hospital not knowing what you may face, as well as, not necessarily knowing how to protect yourself the best way is scary. When this pandemic started there were patients and visitors stealing hand sanitizer and gloves. The hospital started rationing personal protective equipment. Also, protocols for team members are changing daily and as they change fear sets in because you begin to wonder about the previous shift you worked and how the mask you wore then is now not the appropriate type of mask you should wear today.
What I see good coming from this whole experience is preparedness for future outbreaks/pandemics.
I honestly think that healthcare has changed. I think that team members will continue to be required to wear masks, get their temperature checked, self-isolation depending on travel, reduced visitation, will be apart of the future.
Is the lock down working? What lock down? Closure of restaurants, movies, gyms and clubs? Sure they are closed. Do their closures possibly affect the amount of cases seen in the hospital? I would say yes. Most places listed do not practice social distancing or provide proper cleaning between patrons or usage. Closing these type of places until protocols can be put in place to keep the community safe is unfortunately necessary in my opinion.
The advice I would give is to be careful! Everyone has the right to choose who they are around, what they wear, and what they do. However remember that this virus is dangerous, you can recover, but you can also die. Think about that the next time you want to hang out with your big group of friends, not perform proper hand hygiene, choose not to wear a mask. Please stay safe!