When the systems fail you
My job places me on the frontline, often staring down the face of injustice in all its forms, fighting this battle between right and wrong, good and evil, justice and injustice for individuals and families. Most often, this looks like coordinating resources that a family wouldn't normally be able to access in moments of crisis, medical or otherwise, and navigating a system that is far from simple on behalf of the families I work with. Finding hospitals with openings and the capability to provide care, finding emergency transportation, advocating for patients, etc.
There are systems here. They are often complicated to navigate and lacking resources and specialists, but there are medical systems in place. When someone is urgently ill there are hospitals and trained professionals to help. But most times, people can't go to these hospitals. People get sick, or get into an accident, or give birth, and they choose to stay home. They choose to suffer and pray and hope for the best, instead of using the systems in place to access medical care.
WHY? Why would anyone choose this, to not seek help when it's needed. Care is available. We have doctors and hospitals and medicine. But you can't buy these medicines if you're poor. When you can't even pay the Moto taxi to get you to the hospital, you surely can't pay the rising costs of medicine, surgery, even basic IV fluids. And even if you do have money, even if you have someone helping you pay these costs, the hospitals often don't have what you need. They run out of oxygen. They cancel surgeries when the blood banks are empty, which is most of the time. They have doctors and nurses but they are on strike because they too aren't getting paid. The hospital doesn't have electricity because the city doesn't have electricity, and the back up generators can't run on diesel when there is a countrywide gas/diesel shortage. And what happens to a nurse or doctor working under these uncertain conditions? What happens when they fight to save patients but they die simply because they are out of the medicine to save them. They too become jaded. They numb themselves to continue working in a system that is lacking. They are told to treat people with money first, because the hospital needs money, and the staff needs to be paid. They find ways to cope and often this looks like they just stop valuing the life of their patients entirely.
I have worked within these systems, these systems of lacking and coping and poor patient care. And this week I saw what happens when you can't advocate loud enough, and the money you offer isn't enough, and the nurses stop caring because they can't anymore. Babies die. Babies sit in hospital waiting rooms for 4 hours in respiratory distress and cannot get the oxygen they need, in the hospital, to save their life. Because there isn't enough oxygen to save every life, and how can you possibly make that choice. And when the baby is deemed worth saving and oxygen is finally found, the parts needed to run the machine are broken. There are no backups. The child dies. 2 months old, the child dies because the hospital did nothing for 4 hours and couldn't get him air to breathe to save his life. He died because the supplies were too low, the money wasn't enough, and the staff no longer had the capacity to care, to fight for their patients. This is what happens when a whole country is burnt out, when the systems are broken and the people holding up these systems are too tired, lives are lost. Babies die.
When you see people rioting in Haiti, think of these systems. Think of the exhaustion that falls on us when we work in seemingly hopeless situations everyday, and we slowly lose the strength to fight back. People are right to stand up when an infant cannot get oxygen to breathe in a hospital. People are right to stand up when the electricity they pay for runs out, and businesses close because there is no gas/diesel. People are right to stand up when they work everyday and don't get paid, or when they can't do their jobs because the medicine runs out. When people have to choose to suffer at home because they know they won't find help at a hospital. They are right to fight back to systems that are broken with injustice. Sweet baby boy, I'm so sorry the systems failed you. We should have done better for you, rest in peace and healing.
There are systems here. They are often complicated to navigate and lacking resources and specialists, but there are medical systems in place. When someone is urgently ill there are hospitals and trained professionals to help. But most times, people can't go to these hospitals. People get sick, or get into an accident, or give birth, and they choose to stay home. They choose to suffer and pray and hope for the best, instead of using the systems in place to access medical care.
WHY? Why would anyone choose this, to not seek help when it's needed. Care is available. We have doctors and hospitals and medicine. But you can't buy these medicines if you're poor. When you can't even pay the Moto taxi to get you to the hospital, you surely can't pay the rising costs of medicine, surgery, even basic IV fluids. And even if you do have money, even if you have someone helping you pay these costs, the hospitals often don't have what you need. They run out of oxygen. They cancel surgeries when the blood banks are empty, which is most of the time. They have doctors and nurses but they are on strike because they too aren't getting paid. The hospital doesn't have electricity because the city doesn't have electricity, and the back up generators can't run on diesel when there is a countrywide gas/diesel shortage. And what happens to a nurse or doctor working under these uncertain conditions? What happens when they fight to save patients but they die simply because they are out of the medicine to save them. They too become jaded. They numb themselves to continue working in a system that is lacking. They are told to treat people with money first, because the hospital needs money, and the staff needs to be paid. They find ways to cope and often this looks like they just stop valuing the life of their patients entirely.
I have worked within these systems, these systems of lacking and coping and poor patient care. And this week I saw what happens when you can't advocate loud enough, and the money you offer isn't enough, and the nurses stop caring because they can't anymore. Babies die. Babies sit in hospital waiting rooms for 4 hours in respiratory distress and cannot get the oxygen they need, in the hospital, to save their life. Because there isn't enough oxygen to save every life, and how can you possibly make that choice. And when the baby is deemed worth saving and oxygen is finally found, the parts needed to run the machine are broken. There are no backups. The child dies. 2 months old, the child dies because the hospital did nothing for 4 hours and couldn't get him air to breathe to save his life. He died because the supplies were too low, the money wasn't enough, and the staff no longer had the capacity to care, to fight for their patients. This is what happens when a whole country is burnt out, when the systems are broken and the people holding up these systems are too tired, lives are lost. Babies die.
When you see people rioting in Haiti, think of these systems. Think of the exhaustion that falls on us when we work in seemingly hopeless situations everyday, and we slowly lose the strength to fight back. People are right to stand up when an infant cannot get oxygen to breathe in a hospital. People are right to stand up when the electricity they pay for runs out, and businesses close because there is no gas/diesel. People are right to stand up when they work everyday and don't get paid, or when they can't do their jobs because the medicine runs out. When people have to choose to suffer at home because they know they won't find help at a hospital. They are right to fight back to systems that are broken with injustice. Sweet baby boy, I'm so sorry the systems failed you. We should have done better for you, rest in peace and healing.
