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Our response to the COVID-19 pandemic and what it is saying about us
One may argue that these responses were necessary to put minds at ease. But playing public relations games won’t win this race against time.
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A banner declaring self-quarantine measures put in place by residents is seen in front of a neighborhood in Halim Perdanakusuma, East Java, on Monday. Residents have urged people not to pass through the area or visit their homes in an attempt to prevent the further transmission of COVID-19. (JP/P.J. Leo)
I
f you are like me, you have been hunkering down for more than three weeks, feeling blessed that you are asymptomatic and are lucky to have the option to work from the safety of your home. You, like many of your ahead-of-curve self-identified-progressive peers, prefer to self-quarantine even before your government considered making it mandatory.
First, you are doing your part keeping the coronavirus from spreading and flattening the curve so that it won’t overwhelm our already stretched-thin medical capacity. Secondly, by means of corollary, self-quarantine prevents you from getting infected. This works for you because it serves your community and also your self-interest.
Unfortunately, that is not the case for too many of us. Medical professionals and essential service members have my respect. They really do. Doctors and nurses are our greatest asset in fighting this pandemic and their sacrifice deserves to be matched with our effort in keeping them safe. That, aside from stopping the coronavirus from spreading, means getting them the protective gear needed to treat infected patients without it becoming a suicide mission.
As of Wednesday, the Indonesian Medical Association (IDI) has confirmed the death of at least 19 doctors in the fight against the pandemic. With a total of 247 COVID-19 related deaths at the time of writing, doctors account for 7.7 percent of the fatalities. With only six doctors for every 10,000 people, 19 fallen doctors indicate that they are 121 times more likely to die in this pandemic. If we are to win this fight, we need more doctors, not fewer.
The unacceptable rate of infection and death among doctors is a serious concern. Infected doctors must stay away from patients for at least 14 days, hemorrhaging the already worn-thin workforce.
And then there are those working day jobs such as construction workers, motorcycle taxi drivers and servicepersons in the informal economy. Some of us simply do not have the privilege of choosing between personal safety and putting food on the table. They are, now more than ever, stuck between a rock and a hard place.
As soon as the urban economy is put under an induced coma, scores of poor informal sector workers are fleeing Jakarta’s high cost of living. They rush to seek refuge back in their family home in the rural heartland, disregarding any quarantine logic which is central to the containment strategy. First, they migrate to cities to escape rural poverty, and now a pandemic-induced recession is sending them packing. It is a sobering reminder that urban poverty is rural in origin. Our persistent urban-rural inequality may put us at risk for a second wave of infections in the countryside.
The good news is that President’s economic team is up to the task with providing short-term relief through much-needed social safety net crash programs. Our resilience strategy going forward must begin with empowering the rural poor.
We cannot honestly claim that we were caught off guard. Members of the Cabinet played down the outbreak on the basis of tropical latitude even when it is hitting our neighbors who share our climate. The health minister echoed the vice president’s power of the prayer response when asked about an action plan to keep Indonesia coronavirus-free. Another minister, who is now recovering from the disease, had jokingly told reporters that Indonesians are immune to the coronavirus because of our daily rice consumption.
Even when our Malaysian cousins who share our religion and rice diet reported their first case on Jan. 25, we continued to bet on our exceptionalism to keep us shielded from the coronavirus. We have lost that expensive gamble and are still paying for it.
One may argue that these responses were necessary to put minds at ease. But playing public relations games won’t win this race against time. If anything, the absence of robust uniformity, leaders not being on the same page, patchwork measures, piecemeal and ad hoc approaches to policy response are the worst possible publicity. The coronavirus does not play our political games and nor should we — it’s about time.
This crisis is a significant leadership moment. There are no easy choices, but in a race against time, the deferment of actions may prove costly. Leaders must turn to science for guidance, not instinct nor political pandering. We need trained doctors, not social media buzzers. Mask-wearing policies are a good start. With no delay, we must focus on sourcing protective gear for our medical professionals; patients' safety begins with doctor safety. We can’t afford to keep losing our most valuable asset in fighting this pandemic.
We are in this together as a “collective patient” and our preexisting chronic conditions put us at a greater risk of becoming dangerously ill. The COVID-19 pandemic serves as a rear-view mirror. Looking ahead, the way we handle this pandemic will speak volumes of who we are, the quality of our institutions and the competence of our leaders.
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The writer is the Fullbright scholarship recipient and has a doctorate from the University of California.
