Hey Frederick,
Have to be sensitive about a sensitive story for
sensitive results 🙂 Apart from the headline, intro line and last two paras,
(which is a humble request if can go as is) pls feel free to edit if required.
Thank You Frederick. Much appreciated. Pls send me a link when published.
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DATED: 30-07-2020
SLUG: Sensationalism v/s Ethic
WE & MEDIA KILLED OUR 14 YR OLD
Fear Deaths: Think for a while, and then do it all with a smile
We all may have to go a hospital someday. As for the new coronavirus that may
have 1% deaths as predicted and in Goa we are 15,00,000 of us, a focus on the
process of treatment away from the traditional perspective, may be something
that we have to consider after the loss of a 14 year old. This is about mental
health, where all the best medical facilities in the world or pharmaceutical
drugs will make no difference to rising deaths.
"Even the children know that ESI is a COVID hospital," the Ward councillor from
where the girl hails, confirms the conditions just before any treatment process
can happen. This treatment is specifically different if you are from Vasco
apparently; 'hotspot' being a cool word to hear about this place currently, in
the news. Words like 'shamshan ghat' describe this hospital. Rumours of anyone
returning from here, if not unheard, "cannot be accepted closeby like a leper",
report local sources as the person may be 'infected'. Lets try experience
things like this girl from this region did as we read her story. Soon it could
be your region and your story.
Here is how you die:
- YOU are a 14 yr old - already scared entering a hospital for vomiting, fever
and abdomen pain
- Firstly, being from the cursed area, You are asked to be tested for COVID
among other tests - your wait for the COVID test result begins here
- Your blood pressure and oxygen levels drop - so you are directed to GMC
(Goa's biggest hospital) - not for COVID treatment
- At GMC You are confirmed positive for COVID as you are made to wait outside
the isolation ward
- You are now asked for another COVID test - You do this on 22nd night and your
wait for the results begins again here
- then you are confirmed to have lung and kidney complications by the doctor
- YOU are now waiting more than 48 hours for a second COVID test result, that
usually takes 2 hours but no one can help. So you wait.
- You get an 8000 rupee immunity booster before confirming COVID, as a
precaution as test results are not reached yet.
- "She needs to be shifted to ESI Hospital," are words said to your parents in
your presence.
Hearing this YOUR oxygen levels drop further with imbalances in blood pressure.
YOU now cannot be taken to ESI inspite of a waiting ambulance, still awaiting
your COVID result.
While everyone will remember the anxiety just before your results of academic
examinations are declared, this girl handled more intense anxiety for around 48
hours - an exam for her life. The brave soul, now on a ventilator and totally
helpless with only stress and no relief even in sight, breathed her last by the
very morning of 25 July.
Are we now surprised that her blood pressure went haywire and her oxygen levels
dropped as she heard she was to be taken to ESI ? Is this Stigma-FEAR part of
the treatment process that we all imagine - effecting before and after medical
treatment ? Can the ESI stigma aspect making things clearly worse by triggering
FEAR, be ignored totally here, when fear deaths are real ?
While a US doctor confirms, "Stress can also cause cardiomyopathy
(heart-muscle-disease leading to heart failure)," its life threatening ability
needs to be also checked in scenarios like of this brave girl. So what made
medics panic about Vasco ? For starters, all health workers are also human and
equally scared as we understand our fear in the stages of denial we experience
in current times.
But what got public so scared ? The answer was known long before corona in
several studies relating to word-stimuli - how words, as defined by the
environment around you, can trigger FEAR and lead to stereotyping. More is
clear in the sensitisation W.H.O. document updated on February 24 of 'Don't
use' word guidelines under the section ethical journalism with good alternative
verbiage too. This also incidentally says, 'Emphasising efforts to find a
vaccine and treatment can increase fear and give the impression that we are
powerless to halt infections now.' Wait, did we miss something ? What did we
just read ?
'These days our minds are feared with COVID-19 suspects, cases and victims
infecting others, transmitting and spreading the virus.' So strong words like
quarantine, isolation and death toll are obviously terminology we are fearing
everyday since Feb. "Now, no one wants to test," informs the ward councillor,
jut as WHO said if wrong words are used.
Incidentally, did you know that all words in this previous in quotes sentence
are from the 'Don't use' section, derived from sensitisation documents of the
AIDS disease since 40 years - with Human Rights endorsement ? Media has been
respectfully sensitive and not disclosed names of sex workers, or AIDS
survivor, except that of 'corona patients' as called out days ago by the Bombay
High Court. The sentence, "There is always a risk of ostracisation," by one of
the Chief Justices ruling this, makes things amply clear that sensitisation as
a media ethic existed.
The only way forward being trial and error, but here is the error, will there
be a trial ? Stealthily rectifying words now won't help much. Apologising and
creating a media campaign passing on mass sensitisation to the public,
especially the always overburdened police who are used to 'only force' and
'strict action', to unlearn the stereotypical language learnt for past six
months, may be an only way out of the fear psychosis. Condescending tones
replaced with only reassuring tones. No doubt, we got scared, as these words
entered our subconscious and routine language and created a fear pandemic.
Considering these trigger words were read from sensationalising media and
reproduced by everyone on social media, conversations, etc - its true. We and
the media created this fear filled atmosphere in Goa resulting in a crematorium
hospital - something that caused stress. Apart from being responsible it would
be nice to accept, that for using this language, we all are to blame - WE WERE
ALL WRONG.
But with death peak predicted in November, the battle is far from lost, and we
Goans are actually at an advantage, as some optimistic tiatrists, who help
network for this story put it. "We are a most hospitable a bunch, and surely
have a heart, with music, a mind's best companion against stress as a deep part
of our entertaining culture. Goans are known all over the world to make people
happy with their jolly nature." being the narrative here, also agreed by many.
If you can accept you were wrong, be brave enough to apologise, and still smile
after reading this, you are definitely strong enough to spread the smile. Where
blame games are counter productive, apologies help us move on. The solution to
this conundrum, starts with a smile. LETS BREAK THE FEAR CHAIN !
