Challenging times for Witkoppen Clinic healthcare workers

In December 2019, the first ever human cases of novel coronavirus were recorded in the city of Wuhan, China.

This meant that the world had to prepare itself for a war against an invisible enemy following reports that the virus was spreading like a wild fire.

Professional nurse at Witkoppen Clinic, Johannes Mandla, who works in the emergency section at the facility, explained that the pandemic brought a lot of fear and uncertainty to both patients and front-line workers.

He said, “I’ve been in the profession for more than 13 years now and I’ve never experienced such a thing such as this pandemic in my entire professional life. The pandemic brought a lot of fear to everyone. We had to quickly adapt to a number of changes as a result of the pandemic outbreak.

“It was really one of those scary moments because we had to work in an environment that has a high chance for one to contract the virus because sick people come to the clinic. It was really a scary moment dealing with something that had no prospect of ending.”

Mandla said that the outbreak of the pandemic also presented a number of challenges to them as front-line workers and their families.

“The greatest challenge and fear we had was to take the virus to our family members that we live with. I am one of the front-line workers who recently contracted the virus and I had to be in isolation for days treating Covid-19 alone in isolation. We became carriers of the virus to our families and our loved ones.”

Mandla continued, “The first hard lockdown was the most difficult [period] for some of us because we had to deal with stressful work during the day and when we went back home, we were all alone and unable to visit our families to ease the stress of the day.”

Although there were challenges, Mandla said there were good lessons learned that could be used in the future and urged members of the public to practise the safety protocols put in place.

“The pandemic has taught us to always be ready for the unknown and be prepared for a sudden change in our lives and working circles. I call upon every member of our society to play by the rules, wear masks and personal protection equipment at all times.”