Human Writes: Let’s help our medical frontliners by staying home


A British medical team posted this picture on social media, urging people to stay home. In Britain, as well as in Malaysia and in most countries around the globe, governments have ordered people to stay home to try to stem the rising number of Covid-19 cases. Photo: Reuters

I woke up last week to grim news: 368 deaths in Italy in 24 hours on March 16. “It’s happening, ” I told myself as I felt my stomach knot. “It”, Covid-19, is crushing communities, tearing across the planet with unstoppable force. To face a real pandemic – after hearing of the possibility in public health for years – seems surreal.

There’s no quick fix to stop this. The cat is out of the bag – that cat of containment. The problem is among us, unseen and growing, like a terrorist threat. We have no idea what follows next. Modelling done before for pandemics was based on influenza. There’s no saying whether 20% or 60% of the global population will get infected, say experts. Whatever, it won’t be pretty. We can just hope for fewer infections with a warm summer.

Subscribe or renew your subscriptions to win prizes worth up to RM68,000!

Monthly Plan

RM13.90/month

Annual Plan

RM12.33/month

Billed as RM148.00/year

1 month

Free Trial

For new subscribers only


Cancel anytime. No ads. Auto-renewal. Unlimited access to the web and app. Personalised features. Members rewards.
Follow us on our official WhatsApp channel for breaking news alerts and key updates!
   

Next In Living

Traditional Sabahan recipes get the spotlight at Oitom by chef Raphael Peter Lee
Sabahan pride: Malaysian chef Linn Yong champions sustainable Sabah ingredients
Meet Wanda, the machine that collects and separates trash for recycling
Hide KL takes you on a delicious modern Malaysian odyssey with its latest menu
How these US children with special needs got to 'walk on water'
Cost of convenience: Coffee pods need and waste more resources than other methods
‘Dubai chocolate’ craze hits Europe as Swiss brand serves up Middle Eastern flavours
A horse in the sea: Tradition of fishing on horseback on the Belgian coast
Mother Nature, songwriter? Initiative raises royalties for nature preservation
Indonesia to propose its famous Kebaya, Reog and Kolintang as Unesco cultural heritages

Others Also Read