The reality of the Coronavirus
is with us and it’s only fair to periodically look at aspects of our lives that
are being challenged and changed by the virus.
Type of health systems in a country
As the coronavirus is showing us,
your private health insurance won’t help you at times of pandemics. Insurances
are set up as profit-making entities and will seek to opt out of high-risk
exposures that would drain their returns though claim payouts. Your best bet
should be your government. Any move to make governments only regulatory bodies
who watch from the sidelines as private health service provision takes center
stage is mistaken and myopic. Governments should strengthen both their pooling of resources for the common good in the form of a tax-based universal health system and also service
provision in the context of their populace needs and research and development
of both vaccines and technologies.
Best outcomes so far in the
handling of coronavirus pandemics has been in countries with more government
control over service delivery and funding. In the context of low and middle
income countries this augers well as it would also act as a safety net against
exploitation of the poor and marginalized who would face an extra to access
barrier through privatization of services.
Population health management:
As a component of a national
health system, we need to prioritize preventive and community-based heath
approaches to reduce transmission of diseases, be they air-borne or even
water-borne. Without proper investment by governments in public goods like
access to safe drinking water, sanitation and immunization the cost of handling
outbreaks of diseases are all the more increased. As we look at setting up ICUs
and isolation wards we should also seek to promote population health management
strategies.
Armchair experts on health policy,infection control and all medical
issues
A time of pandemic is a time of
fear for the general public but the most disturbing thing are the range of
opinions by medical practitioners that can easily be mistaken for the only
truth. This leaves room for many people who many not have expertise on the
subject offering half-baked and even spurious claims that may result in
spreading the disease instead of controlling it. So, seek advice from only
trusted and validated opinions of Ministry of Health and WHO and key opinion
leaders in the health profession whose advice is backed by scientific basis.
Social space.
Ever thought how some people are
always in your face and never giving you space at the Mpesa agent or while queing for matatus at Nyama Kima
, at the banking hall queue of the bank or at the supermarket checkout counters.
Guess what, all you have to do is have a slight sniffle and the social distance is restored. The happiness that an introvert feels in the quiet of the house with a good
book or movie is now though shared with company of family members forced to
stop their kutangatanga and instead be
at home in a lockdown.
Lack of civility and tissue paper as an essential supply
In a scene out of an apocalyptic
movie, the middle class have been busy stocking up on tissue paper and hand
sanitisers in the mistake belief they will disinfect themselves and wipe their
behinds so well that the virus will slide away from them. The shortages
of essential hygiene commodities created by such irrationality in a time of pandemic increases the chances of
infection spread as other would be unable to access the sanitisers and will
readily spread the virus to the tissue-hoarding members of society.
Lack of ethics in entrepreneurship
The above scenes of greed and
insecurities are but an extension of the society’s values. The thought that in
a time of scarcity a group of entrepreneurs emerge, with a pursuit to buy out
all the essentials and resell them at mind-boggling markups is a reminder of
what ails capitalism. Recently a man in Tennessee,USA bought thousands of hand sanitizers and was reselling them on Amazon at inflated prices only for karma to come back and bite him in the behind.
It’s all good to create
availability of commodities that are in scarcity through innovative
manufacturing or sourcing and charging a profit, but to put up 1000% markup is
immoral but won’t be uncommon if the current pattern of the spread of the virus
continues.
Greed of investors and vultures
At times like this of utmost
hardship, there will be greater incidents of the 1% of the society trying to
buy-out distressed firms and family owned businesses at a fraction of their
worth, only because they can. I would like to see how this unfolds given it’s
not a case of if , but when it happens.
After all has been said and done,
all that matters is the kindness we show those unable to access the essentials
while they are sold at inflated costs or what we communicate to the government
to institute measures to mitigate against the extra strain on the distressed
bottom 10% of the population. Our humanity is not in how good we are in our
prayers but in how well we take care of each other in times of need.
Come to think of it God still exists even though the ornate mosques and cathedrals may be closed for public use. So, after all, remembrance of God should be in our hearts and not in buildings.
Peace be upon you all.
*edited version
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