FEARLESS ON THE FRONTLINE
The refrain has rung out in public health announcements and social media posts around the globe: “I stayed at work for you. You stay at home for us!” As New Zealand approaches 10 days of level 4 lockdown, workers performing essential services continue to put themselves at the greatest risk of Covid-19 exposure. While all responsible New Zealanders isolating at home may be becoming slightly claustrophobic by now, those at the frontline reveal sacrifices of a different kind.
and meet the Kiwis who cannot stay at home.
Glyn Avery, Wellington Wellington zookeeper Conducting a health assessment on an African goat when the vet and zookeeper have to remain in separate rooms is cumbersome to say the least.
That’s the reality for Wellington Zoo’s Herbivore & Bird team leader, Glyn Avery.
While most of the designated essential businesses during the Covid-19 lockdown are to service human needs, the exotic tastes and needs of zoo animals do not stop.
A team of 25 zookeepers and vets — split into two isolated groups — still remain at Wellington Zoo tending to the animals.
“Everyday the animals still need to be fed and all of their husbandry needs. That can be things like cleaning.
“The animals that need veterinary care are receiving that,” Avery says.
“But we have changed the way that we work operationally, to employ social distancing and that sort of thing so we minimise the risk to the zoo’s operations.”
This separation from his colleagues has made handling some animals a logistical feat.
“For example the other day we did a health assessment on a goat.
“So ordinarily that would be the keepers in with the vet, but I went into the paddock with the goat, brought the goat down to the glass window with some treats at the front of the habitat, and then got it lined right up there so the vets could see.”
Fear that Covid-19 could be passed on to animals such as the great apes also has keepers maintaining “extreme distance” from them and monitoring their own health.
The diminished numbers of people sharing the zoo grounds has also been noticed.
“The animals are quite inquisitive. They are noticing the difference.”
Larissa Jacobs, 38, Hastings Police officer
A photo of Constable Larissa Jacobs in full hazmat suit on a NZ Police Facebook page this week was a stark revelation.
The 38-year-old Hastings police officer has attended only one job in the full PPE suit so far, but patrol cars now all have kits of the gowns, masks and visors stored in the boot.
If police communications believe an incident has a risk of direct exposure to a Covid-19 case, the attending officers are instructed to stop and change into the kits en route.
“That job there was a female knocking on doors wanting to use the bathroom and she had quite a lot of flu-like symptoms so we stopped somewhere and kitted up for that job,” Jacobs says of the Facebook snap.
“We don’t want to scare the public by wearing the suit but at the same time at the back of your head you think ‘are we going to get in a scuffle?’.”
But although Jacobs admits there is “a lot of added pressure” with the new procedures, the biggest stress is the public’s ignorance and disregard of the lockdown rules.
“We’re doing a lot of patrolling
PHOTO / MARK MITCHELL and actually educating people on the streets that are not understanding of the seriousness of this,” she says.
It’s not hard for Jacobs to recognise the seriousness, as she has had to isolate from her 19-year-old daughter.
“My daughter stays with me but she’s actually staying out on a farm [now] because I don’t want her exposed if I got ill or something.
“It’s hard, we’re very close, but it is what it is. We’re both in a positive mind frame and we keep in contact.
“So it’s just keeping that going, keeping that contact going. Mainly phone calls, text.”
Fahimeh Rahnama, 52, Kumeu Laboratory scientist testing Covid-19 samples
Fahimeh Rahnama is in the midst of rapid intensification at her virology lab in Auckland Hospital — an expanding team of 20-plus scientists are trying to churn through up to 1000 Covid19 test samples a day.
Rahnama is lead scientist for the Auckland Hospital reference team, one of several laboratory hubs around New Zealand testing human swab samples.
In a matter of weeks her team has gone from 14 staff to more than 20. Rahnama has just taken her first day off, after working 12 straight.
“I mean last two weeks have been really long days, 10 to 12 hours,” Rahnam said.
“This weekend my manager said I had to have to take two days off, before I go back to work.
“My family, I’m the only one who works.
“My family, to be honest I don’t see them nowadays.
“I work so much that I come home and I go to bed. I’m in my own bubble.”
Rahnama says the level of forward planning in the lab is huge.
“Nothing goes as normal nowadays, the companies that were really reliable at delivering stuff to us, they just can’t do it anymore, too much demand from around the world,” she says.
“People don’t have any idea how much work you have to do, it’s not just the testing.”