Don’t discriminate against Covid-19-infected people
By late last week, nearly 1.9 million people in Vietnam had contracted the coronavirus. This number continues to rise as more highly contagious variants have been found here, particularly Omicron. However, many locals are excessively fearful of infected people, and in many cases, they even show blatant discrimination against people testing positive for the coronavirus. I knew of a case in which a person incidentally came into close contact with his friend. Later, when the friend tested positive for Covid-19, that person severely reprimanded and accused the friend of causing a disaster to him. There are also quite a few people who are so haunted by Covid-19 infections that they quickly spread baseless or unconfirmed Covid-19 cases in their quarters, stoking fear and panic there.
We just experienced five tough months of social distancing and are now living in the new normal where everyone needs to safely and flexibly live with Covid. Therefore, new infections are inevitable.
Currently, the Covid vaccination rate is high and the health authorities are giving vaccine boosters.
Therefore, if a friend, an acquaintance, a colleague or a neighbor gets infected, we should keep our head cool and try to avoid excessive worries. A negative attitude will make our life more miserable and confusing.
Instead of collecting anxious thoughts we should focus on preventive measures, such as fully complying with the “5K” safety protocols, having balanced and healthy meals and working out regularly to enhance our health, which is also a way to increase herd immunity. At the same time, we should show empathy to Covid-infected people so that they can get over the disease. If we contract the virus, we should stay calm and get medical treatment. A vast majority of cases have had mild or no symptoms and recovered soon.
Anyone should work to create physical and spiritual materials for themselves, families and society. If someone is still too nervously frightened by Covid, they should stay at home. They should not sow fears in communities, which will create a heavier burden.