With hope in our hearts

First, I hope those reading this are physically healthy—that you are symptom free and have avoided this truly awful virus. I hear the symptoms are horrendous; the degree of fatigue and coughing is exhausting even without the fever, joint pain, headaches and relentless tiredness.

Equally, I hope you remain mentally healthy. If someone is physically unable to do something then they usually stop trying. But for those who are psychologically struggling, many find it harder to admit, and attempt to push through, work on and ignore (or be unaware) of the signs. That is until we burn out and run out of resilience. It takes enormous courage to stand up and say enough is enough. We were working on good faith and reactive management, with a depleted nursing workforce, even before the current dystopian situation.

Now, more than ever, we need to stay safe and be kind to one another.

In recent weeks, so many thoughts and questions have run through my mind. These are just a few: