While it is officially spring, a time which usually brings warmer weather and time for growth, I know there is one thing on everyone's mind: COVID-19. We are living in an unprecedented time of challenges and uncertainty. While some businesses are booming (I'm looking at you Netflix and Houseparty), many are struggling to get by after the UK Government imposed a national lockdown in an attempt to stop the spread of coronavirus and reduce the unimaginable stress that this is placing on the NHS. As of 31 March, companies and restaurants such as Carluccio's are collapsing, and jobs are at risk all across the UK (Plummer, 2020). Rightfully, this global pandemic is taking the spotlight, but there are other matters just as urgent—abortions may become more difficult for women to access as policies have already changed several times, and, over 27–29 March, calls to the UK's national abuse hotline rose by 65% due to individuals being forced to self-isolate with their abusers (Connolly, 2020; King, 2020).
It may seem all doom and gloom, but the pandemic has highlighted the cracks in the UK healthcare system (as well as elsewhere in the world), which need to be fixed to ensure citizens are cared for and to end the marginalisation of the poorer population. As a social species, the lack of in-person contact that we are presently having is proving difficult for many. However, it is heart-warming to see the steps we are taking to socialise and make others feel less alone. I have seen young people take care of their older neighbours and ensure they have enough food, building residents making friends from the comfort of their home through signs placed in windows and friends checking up on friends who may struggle to reach out.
We are living in a time where we are showing our most caring, generous and empathetic selves. In the wake of many aesthetic clinics being temporarily closed as a result of the outbreak, aesthetic nurses are offering their invaluable service to the strained NHS in an effort to help. For nurses who wish to offer their skills and services, you can sign up here: https://tinyurl.com/wdhxlcv. Non-medical staff who may wish to join the NHS's ‘volunteer army’ to help in delivering prescriptions, making phone calls to the particularly isolated members of society and driving patients to and from hospital can register here: https://tinyurl.com/u7m8d3b.
While this is an undeniably stressful time for all, not least to those of you running businesses, there are Facebook groups that can be joined to create a sense of solidarity for practitioners and a plethora of free and useful training that can be found online. Furthermore, as running a business takes up a lot of time, this crisis may provide an opportunity for practitioners, and self-isolation could be an ideal time to further training and education through online courses, as, usually, it can be difficult to find the time to do so. If we carry on working together to do our part, whether this is by staying at home or signing up to support the NHS, we will come out of this stronger and more united than ever.
Stay safe, stay healthy and stay connected.