“We’ve undergone extensive training in the wearing of personal protective equipment and how to manage very sick patients in a way to diminish exposure to ourselves and other colleagues,” Dr Sajan said.
Originally from Iringa, Tanzania, Dr Sajan has worked as an emergency doctor in Vancouver since 1998. He grew up in Toronto after his family moved when he was three, then undertook an undergraduate degree at McGill before completing medical school in Toronto.
Dr Sajan, who attends Downtown Jamatkhana in Vancouver, says he doesn’t often feel anxious about the virus while working, but does sometimes worry when he’s not.
“Managing the anxiety in the moment is easier by just focusing on the task at hand,” he explained.
He says hospitals have seen a decrease in non-Covid related cases because people have been told to stay at home and isolate as much as possible.
“Now that our preparation stage is well underway, we want to get the word out that if you feel you need to be seen within the health care system, you should still be coming,” he said.
Dr Sajan also applauds the work of the many unsung heroes during the pandemic.
“It’s important to acknowledge that front-line workers extend to many other aspects of health care delivery, from porters to housekeepers to the people who work in the lab departments and radiology departments,” he said.
“And that extends beyond, to the general community at large: the people who sell us our groceries, and work in our pharmacies, and work in our gas stations. All those folks need appropriate acknowledgement, not just doctors and nurses who tend to be the faces of front-line workers.”
