It’s a very surreal moment.
We experienced ebola back in 2014 and, it ravaged Liberia. But that experience felt so invisible, so awful and heart breaking because it West Africa bore it alone, save a few sensational headlines on international TV. Yes, the US and international community stepped into stop ebola but it took a long time to contain and stop transmissions. Liberia got isolated (flights suspended) and, it really felt like it was Liberia’s problem and not a global one for global public health. What’s more DRC Congo has been facing an ebola outbreak for a couple of years now.
We experienced ebola back in 2014 and, it ravaged Liberia. But that experience felt so invisible, so awful and heart breaking because it West Africa bore it alone, save a few sensational headlines on international TV. Yes, the US and international community stepped into stop ebola but it took a long time to contain and stop transmissions. Liberia got isolated (flights suspended) and, it really felt like it was Liberia’s problem and not a global one for global public health. What’s more DRC Congo has been facing an ebola outbreak for a couple of years now.
As long as diseases plagued poor races elsewhere , it wasn't an emergency, it wasn't a concern. Out of sight, they deserve a cursory headline, especially in Africa. We had no clue how they affect societies, health care systems, economies.
Now COVID-19 ’s global spread has made some realise that pandemics can affect poor and rich, that our health care systems can teeter on the brink of collapse, and re-think our flimsy, violent and toxic capitalist systems. None of us are actually prepared for epidemics. Only a couple of countries acted fast: South Korea and Hong Kong.
We are all following WHO and, it's updates and recommendations, but still far away from putting our resources and responses together.
This pandemic isn't invisible. It's being documented, analysed and, reported every second. I don't think it's sensationalised either for most of the reporting is soberly covering the crisis in Europe where the body pile up goes into tens of thousands. No time for sensationalism.
It's only the time for some idiot leaders who are downplaying the severity, delaying strong measures such as lock downs or not coming up with emergency responses.
It's still every state for itself.
We are all following WHO and, it's updates and recommendations, but still far away from putting our resources and responses together.
This pandemic isn't invisible. It's being documented, analysed and, reported every second. I don't think it's sensationalised either for most of the reporting is soberly covering the crisis in Europe where the body pile up goes into tens of thousands. No time for sensationalism.
It's only the time for some idiot leaders who are downplaying the severity, delaying strong measures such as lock downs or not coming up with emergency responses.
It's still every state for itself.
In Islamabad, within a week, there’s been a near-total lock down. This is a mainly residential, administrative capital with well to do folks with a now-growing business sector, too. The city is organised into sectors with a main commercial area or a "Markaz."
All schools have been closed since 16 March. I was a little , shall we say, excited that school was out. Kavita has started dreading early morning wake up time so I could take a vacation from the morning blues. That week was quite normal and, I even met some friends. I thought if I had lived through ebola, I could get a grip on this by following protocols, understanding the epidemic and reading as much as possible.
Of course, this is an entirely different virus with a different disease and, somehow one feels more freaked out. It seems one get can it from perfectly healthy people who may carry it up to 2 weeks and keep passing it on (One could get ebola only by those were very sick with it).
This past week everything else shut down. Virtually all shops and restaurants and offices save for banks, groceries stores, fruit/veg vendors, and pharmacies are open in the Markaz. They are totally empty. Even dhabas seem to be closed.
This past week the furthest I've ventured to is Shifa International Hospital in H-8 because one of Kavita's medicines (she's on a daily dose of HCQ, Cellsept, Prednisolone, and Renitec) had run out in the pharmacies. (It was the HCQ - maybe this has something to do with it? Chloroquine: Trump's misleading claims spark hoarding and overdoses) I was very stressed. I messaged Kavita's doctor (he's the head of Paeds Medicine at PIMS) but no response from him. His Assistant too promised to get back to me, but no answer. I called up Al Shifa and the Pharmacy there said they might be able to get it from me or order it for (some ignorant person clearly answered the phone). I went there at about 6 or 7 PM. Kavita insisted on coming alone. The security guard at the main entrance said he wouldn't let me go in with Kavita and she would have to stay outside. I didn't agree to leave her outside and entered the Hospital through the Emergency after explaining why I was there. I had taken the fat medical file and kept shoving it in front of everyone's face. Thankfully, the Pharmacy did have the HCQ and let me take 2 months' supply. What a relief.
I also went to the flower nurseries on Peshawar Mor. Alone. They were open and, I brought back some beautiful flowers, a few shrubs, roses and a couple of plants for an ongoing garden beautiful project. I also purchased some bird houses made of clay to hang in the trees in our garden. Our mali sleeps at our house so he's available to do gardening work. For a whole day we planted flowers everywhere and, it was a lot of fun. Good way to spend the time.
Besides that, it's been a few trips to F-10 and F-11 markets, close to our house. Everything is closed and, it's strange.
On Saturday, I decided to make a grocery, fruit/veg fresh meat run and stock up. I ordered a Careem for a trip to the market and back. The Careem Driver put me in front of Shaheen Store in F-10 and, he was meant to wait for me for a couple of stops more before taking me back home. I asked him to put my phone on charge while I went in. When I came out, he was nowhere to be seen. He had taken off. I spent the next couple of days trying to explain to Careem what happened. Their system is utterly useless and it took them 6 hours to believe me before they started tracking down their "Captain" (how they refer to their drivers). That Captain had made up a bullshit story that his father had died and he had to rush back to his village. He called me the next day and, told me he was sending my phone back with a Careem Bike. I ended up paying for that ride and, then saw all my data had been wiped clean.
Stress upon stress.
Visiting the market was kind of sad to see it so empty but I didn't feel nervous or scared of getting the virus. Only a few shoppers were out, no kids, except the begging children. The Shaheen store was only letting in a few shoppers at a time (these are very very small supermarkets with crowded, narrow aisles). The staff at the entrance was wearing a hazmut suit and giving sanitiser drops to shoppers to clean their hands with. I was impressed. All the other shops I went to had staff at the entrance handing out sanitiser to clean hands with.
I've also been for a my usual walk round the neighbourhood with Kavita. A lot of folks can be seen walking, I suppose there's not much else to do.
Our neighbours are getting a paint job done on their exterior walls (I got that done first week school was out for a spare room ) . Otherwise, it's pretty quiet.
I've been 'at home' mostly for this whole year in Pakistan so I'm used to being at home and busy in my own little routine. I've been cooking, cleaning, watching Netflix, TV, reading and writing.
There's a lot of anxiety and stress. I keep reaching for parallels with the Ebola Epidemic , trying to find a perspective, a sense of where this is going, and how we have to deal with it. The scale of this thing is global though.
I feel I'm going to be stuck in Islamabad for quite long, now, uncertain when I'll be able to travel back to Liberia. Haresh is back there, having to go on for more time alone.
I keep going on with my normal routine but I'd be lying if I said I wasn't worried or stressed. Will have to take it a day at a time.
This past week the furthest I've ventured to is Shifa International Hospital in H-8 because one of Kavita's medicines (she's on a daily dose of HCQ, Cellsept, Prednisolone, and Renitec) had run out in the pharmacies. (It was the HCQ - maybe this has something to do with it? Chloroquine: Trump's misleading claims spark hoarding and overdoses) I was very stressed. I messaged Kavita's doctor (he's the head of Paeds Medicine at PIMS) but no response from him. His Assistant too promised to get back to me, but no answer. I called up Al Shifa and the Pharmacy there said they might be able to get it from me or order it for (some ignorant person clearly answered the phone). I went there at about 6 or 7 PM. Kavita insisted on coming alone. The security guard at the main entrance said he wouldn't let me go in with Kavita and she would have to stay outside. I didn't agree to leave her outside and entered the Hospital through the Emergency after explaining why I was there. I had taken the fat medical file and kept shoving it in front of everyone's face. Thankfully, the Pharmacy did have the HCQ and let me take 2 months' supply. What a relief.
I also went to the flower nurseries on Peshawar Mor. Alone. They were open and, I brought back some beautiful flowers, a few shrubs, roses and a couple of plants for an ongoing garden beautiful project. I also purchased some bird houses made of clay to hang in the trees in our garden. Our mali sleeps at our house so he's available to do gardening work. For a whole day we planted flowers everywhere and, it was a lot of fun. Good way to spend the time.
Besides that, it's been a few trips to F-10 and F-11 markets, close to our house. Everything is closed and, it's strange.
On Saturday, I decided to make a grocery, fruit/veg fresh meat run and stock up. I ordered a Careem for a trip to the market and back. The Careem Driver put me in front of Shaheen Store in F-10 and, he was meant to wait for me for a couple of stops more before taking me back home. I asked him to put my phone on charge while I went in. When I came out, he was nowhere to be seen. He had taken off. I spent the next couple of days trying to explain to Careem what happened. Their system is utterly useless and it took them 6 hours to believe me before they started tracking down their "Captain" (how they refer to their drivers). That Captain had made up a bullshit story that his father had died and he had to rush back to his village. He called me the next day and, told me he was sending my phone back with a Careem Bike. I ended up paying for that ride and, then saw all my data had been wiped clean.
Stress upon stress.
Visiting the market was kind of sad to see it so empty but I didn't feel nervous or scared of getting the virus. Only a few shoppers were out, no kids, except the begging children. The Shaheen store was only letting in a few shoppers at a time (these are very very small supermarkets with crowded, narrow aisles). The staff at the entrance was wearing a hazmut suit and giving sanitiser drops to shoppers to clean their hands with. I was impressed. All the other shops I went to had staff at the entrance handing out sanitiser to clean hands with.
I've also been for a my usual walk round the neighbourhood with Kavita. A lot of folks can be seen walking, I suppose there's not much else to do.
Our neighbours are getting a paint job done on their exterior walls (I got that done first week school was out for a spare room ) . Otherwise, it's pretty quiet.
I've been 'at home' mostly for this whole year in Pakistan so I'm used to being at home and busy in my own little routine. I've been cooking, cleaning, watching Netflix, TV, reading and writing.
There's a lot of anxiety and stress. I keep reaching for parallels with the Ebola Epidemic , trying to find a perspective, a sense of where this is going, and how we have to deal with it. The scale of this thing is global though.
I feel I'm going to be stuck in Islamabad for quite long, now, uncertain when I'll be able to travel back to Liberia. Haresh is back there, having to go on for more time alone.
I keep going on with my normal routine but I'd be lying if I said I wasn't worried or stressed. Will have to take it a day at a time.
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