If we care about NHS staff, we should stop calling them saints | Ian Macdonald
In a secular age, we cast doctors and nurses in the role of miracle-workers - it's an impossible expectation to live up to
In the coronavirus pandemic the transition from being apparently healthy to desperately ill on a ventilator can be very sudden. The experience of one day being surrounded by family, the next by people dressed as though they're in a science-fiction film must be terrifying. The fear of death is felt not only by the patient but by family and friends. In these moments, NHS staff form the barrier between life and death. And the starkness of the daily images we see has brought great appreciation for those people who help us in the transition from home to hospital - and, hopefully, back again.
Anxiety is common when we move across ordinary social boundaries or thresholds: from child to adult, from single to married, from student to graduate. We look up to those who help us, and are dependent upon their knowledge and skills to smooth the path. Currently, new boundaries are being created determining where we can go, who with and what for. Naturally, new anxieties are arising.
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