Not since WWII has our entire country been united against a common and indiscriminate threat.
But rather than our ‘enemy’ being our fellow human beings, instead, this is ‘germ warfare’, and it’s our NHS who are on the front line of the battle.
Of course, this battle has many fronts which is why all health care professionals and emergency services personal are each on the front line.
But the images and pictures which we see in the mainstream media on a daily basis are just the tip of the iceberg.
They do not show an accurate domestic picture of the relentless ‘attack’ on humanity of the microscopic virus that wants to try and kill us.
News has just broken in the last few minutes (at the time of writing this) that 759 people have now lost their lives having contracted COVID-19.
And that figure will only grow.
I have had the honour of serving in both the armed forces (Royal Navy) and the emergency services (Met Police & RNLI).
During my time in the military, I was stationed in Sierra Leone (HMS Norfolk) during the 1999 civil war and was also stationed in the Adriatic during the 1999 NATO/Yugoslavia war.
I also remember being posted on my boroughs “bomb car” in Tower Hamlets on the day that the 7/7 bombers struck in London.
I mention the above because, up until this point, I had always thought that only emergency services and armed forces personnel would have any idea as to what it felt like being in a ‘conflict zone’.
I had always thought that my former emergency services/military colleagues would know what it felt like to be in the midst of a ‘mass-casualty’ event.
But as the COVID-19 pandemic spreads and take more lives, the men and women on the front line of the NHS will now also endure an environment which is akin to a field hospital on the front line of any battlefield.
But rather than dealing with the injuries associated with the front line of a war zone, they are dealing with the devastating effects of an unseen killer.
I take my hat off to the men and women who are having to make the heart-wrenching decisions as to who lives and who dies.
And yet, we know that if we stay away from people and ‘self-isolate’, then the chances of getting the killer virus are lowered. If we go out, to the shops etc., then we know that we must keep at least two metres apart to decrease our risk of getting COVID-19.
When we get home, we know that we must thoroughly wash our hands before touching anything in our houses – including our family. We know that we must wash our hands before touching our mouth, nose or eyes so as to decrease the chances of getting COVID-19.
We can stop the spread. We can save lives.
But this is a battle that requires every one of us to play our part. This is a ‘war’ we are all fighting; every single one of us around the world.
As we were browsing through the posts which have been submitted by the members of our ‘Emergency Services News | Community‘ Group on Facebook, one of our team saw a post submitted by a group member that called for an ‘NHS Day’ to recognise the efforts put into this ‘germ warfare’ by the men and women who make up the ranks of the NHS.
And we thought that many of our readers would also agree that having an ‘NHS Day’ (once this national emergency is over) was a great idea.
So we have set up a petition, to see just how many people out there agree that, once the dust has settled, then we should have a yearly national day for the amazing men and women who serve in the NHS.
Any monies raised on this day should, in my humble opinion, go into a mental health fund for the NHS/Emergency services.
‘NHS Day’ will be a day to reflect upon the men and women who have been risking their own lives, to save ours.
It will be a day to celebrate the truly remarkable human beings who dedicate their lives to saving the lives of others.
It will be a day to acknowledge the sacrifices which were made by the men and women who gave so much to try and save so many.
It will be a day to celebrate the 600,000+ NHS volunteers who have signed up to help the vulnerable.
If you would like to sign the petition, then please follow this link:
https://www.change.org/We_Need_A_National_NHS_Day
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NO WE SHOULDN’T if anything we should have a national ‘key workers day’ as eg what about the police , as just one example, who are also frontline when it comes to facing Covid-19 head on whilst trying to protect us. I, as a NHS worker, want other key workers recognised too.