Read on Twitter
Quick thread about the state of the world in relation to my experiences of @findabedAU in the past week
The demand for isolation places for health workers is extraordinary. It is busier than it was at the peak of the fires and the target is much more complex and niche
I’ve spoken to doctors whose partners have progressive genetic illnesses and whose kids have cancer. I’ve heard from first year nurses and doctors who live with their elderly parents. And I’ve heard from health professionals whose housemates work other essential jobs.
There are sharehouses filled with doctors who are very concerned about making someone else sick and then tracking that to another hospital.
They can’t cope with the stress of potentially passing it to their households. And nor can they cope with the guilt of potentially passing it to their patients
Meanwhile, AirBNB have helpfully set up a system to donate your vacant properties for this purpose. And there’s a landlord campaign called “hosts fight back” trying to stop this “guilt fest”
There’s plenty of goodwill in the community. But we can’t rely on people to donate property. Not everyone can afford to, obviously. And even if they did, there aren’t enough vacant properties within appropriate proximity to hospitals and care facilities
I am in awe of what @erinrileyau and our amazing team have done this week. But frankly, it’s an uphill battle that we can’t win. ALTHOUGH this is not a wicked problem. It’s incredibly simple. Fund accommodation for all health workers who need to isolate.
It’s good for their health, which is good for ours. Our health has always been dependent on the health of others. This crisis just shows the extent. When the people keeping us safe and healthy have a place that they can genuinely rest in, we all win.
This is not a problem that can be solved by my friends and I (brilliant and creative and hardworking as they are) on a Slack channel. This can be solved SO quickly and relatively cheaply. Hotels keep staff on, everyone wins here.
We’ve always said that we’ll be here and we have. We’re still working on fire affected family cases long after interest moved on. We’re still working with communities who will be doubly affected by COVID. And we’ll do our best. But our best is up against unwinnable odds
Without money, and a systemic way to access people, it can’t be done. There are dozens of doctors and nurses and pharmacists getting in touch on the hour. We don’t know how long they need a place.
We will all do what we can to play our part in reducing the transmission of the virus. But keeping our health workers safe, keeps all of us safe. There’s no doubt about it. It’s critical
So sign the petition, give your MP a call, email the Prime Minister. Ask them to protect the people who work absurdly long hours to keep us safe. Ask them to provide accommodation for our health workers. Tbh, I’d arrange the discounts myself if I had to http://findabed.com.au/petition
