PEOPLE all over the world commemorated International Nurses’ Day yesterday ((WED)). Nurses, among other essential workers, continue to put their lives at risk, especially during the Covid-19 pandemic, to ensure healthier communities.
City Hospital has recorded 624 Covid-19 patients since the start of the pandemic. From this number, 127 patients died. The hospital also had 114 staffers infected with the virus, including two fatalities.
“I got a reality check when a third Coronavirus patient died in our hospital. That is when I realised that the virus was real and I was scared for my life. I had to soldier on though, especially for our patients, because no one could be physically there for them except for us,” said City Hospital Sister Princess Gwacela.
DURBAN - PEOPLE across the world commemorated International Nurses Day on Wednesday. Nurses, among other essential workers, continue to put their lives at risk, especially during the Covid-19 pandemic.
City Hospital has recorded 624 Covid-19 patients since the start of the pandemic. From this number, 127 patients died. The hospital also had 114 staffers infected with the virus, including two fatalities.
“I got a reality check when a third coronavirus patient died in our hospital. That is when I realised that the virus was real and I was scared for my life. I had to soldier on though, especially for our patients, because no one could be physically there for them except for us,” said City Hospital Sister Princess Gwacela.
“Seeing patients die was very scary. However, people now see us as heroes and seeing people recover keeps us motivated,” said Sister Thulisile Msomi.
For Kumeshan Kramnanen, City Hospital’s enrolled nurse, dealing with the coronavirus has not been much of a challenge because of all the support he received from his colleagues, family and Department of Health.
City Hospital commemorated International Nurses Day by gifting cups to the first 30 nurses who arrived at work on Wednesday morning. The remaining nurses received water bottles along with chocolates for each employee.
“With the arrival of the virus, a lot of us went into the unknown but the safety of our staff was of paramount importance. Despite the challenges, we want to thank all nurses for being instrumental in the fight against Covid-19,” said Matron Irene Naicker.
Health MEC Nomagugu Simelane also paid tribute to all nurses for their stellar role in pandemic battle.
“At a time when we were being hit hard by the pandemic, our nurses were on the front lines. They have stood firm and got on with the job. We know how difficult it was for some of them emotionally. Having to come to work after losing their colleagues or while some of them had been infected with the virus, must not have been easy.
“To illustrate the point about how exposed our nurses are, since the pandemic began, at least 17 076 nurses have been infected with Covid-19, with 397 having sadly succumbed to the disease. May their souls rest in peace,” said Simelane.
The Health MEC also thanked nurses for the role they played in the vaccination of the elderly, and encouraging those aged 18 years and older to register for the vaccination.
“Our target for Phase Two is to vaccinate at least 2.9 million people by October 2021, with Phase Three expected to begin in 2021,” said Simelane.
“We have an army of 7 616 people who are trained to carry out these vaccinations, and we are confident that, with the requisite support and co-operation from the public, we can indeed accomplish these targets, and move closer towards achieving the 67% population immunity that we need,” Simelane said.
The country at large has recorded 1599272 coronavirus cases, 54 896 deaths and 1519258 recoveries to date.
Minister of Health Dr Zweli Mkhize on Wednesday announced that 414 337 health-care workers have been vaccinated thus far.
Daily News