COVID-19

 

Everything felt surreal when the pandemic began. The number of positive cases has increased, together with the high death toll and the full hospitals, with no more critical-care beds. Social media are broadcasting news related to COVID-19 around all the time. This is exhausting and harms not only our emotions but our mental health as well. There's much panic, leaving us to feel like our lives have been reprogrammed.

Most schools and universities around the world have closed to contain the spread of the virus as well as other establishments, including restaurants, bars, which are shut or temporarily closed. Transport and border restrictions are also increasingly apparent. In our work environments, we have also experienced in hand sudden and drastic changes. With people working from home on an unprecedented scale, the increased use of digital platforms maintains activity and communication, and employees request leave not just for sickness but also for caring needs and quarantine.

In a broader sense, our lives have seen direct changes in the provision of e-services in public administration and services, education, leisure, and many more. Measures needed to be taken, such as addressing the needs of high-risk people, have been set up. This applies especially to people who experience difficulties in utility bills, mortgage payments, and debts. This is a tough situation, but all the restrictions made are essential to guarantee our safety. Appreciation and gratitude are given to doctors, nurses, pharmacists, and other healthcare workers and also to couriers, policemen, grocery shop assistants, and all the workers still doing their job everywhere. 

The pandemic sheds light on humanity, its impacts, and how we all are joined at the hip. I would like to finish this by saying that we're going to come out of this with a greater sense of the humanity we shared. Trust that everything will get better in the long run.