Thank you, healthcare workers.

In case you forget, amidst the continued surge of new COVID-19 cases resulting in hospitalizations and deaths, you are heard and you are seen, even when you may feel you are not.

Your continued work on the frontlines is respected and admired. You keep on showing up to do the necessary work—when the majority of Americans are not. Despite the lack of PPE, the long hours, and the psychological toll of caring for ill patients, in addition to seeing those die who potentially could have survived under different circumstances, you trudge on.

I think of you all every day. I experience anger and frustration on your behalf as I hear from neighbors and friends about their holiday plans or what friends came to their house for a visit, or what recent social event they attended.

The lack of respect given toward those fighting this pandemic daily within our hospitals across the country is a reflection of a broader problem within our society. The problem is that of entitlement associated with a lack of empathy and compassion for others.

I was reminded this morning as I threw on my faded maternity sweatshirt that says, “teach them kindness.” It is a missing factor as people choose to not take the proper precautions to end this pandemic. Perhaps the most important lesson I will teach my child will be to have kindness toward others.

As I watch my baby, born during this pandemic, continue to thrive and grow within the confines of our home, I will continue to take every precaution possible to do my best to ensure her health as well as those around me. I owe it to her as her mother, and I owe it to all my family and friends who have supported me in times of need. Perhaps, most importantly, I owe it to you healthcare workers.

I am grateful you are here to help those affected by COVID-19. I am also grateful for the times you were there for my grandpa when he was ill with cancer, for myself and my baby as she entered into this world, for the compassion you gave to my great-grandma as she lived her final years in a nursing home.

I wish others saw that the impact of this pandemic will reach far past this year or next. It is and will continue to impact all levels and types of healthcare for years to come, as we have yet to see the aftermath of this pandemic.

This is a time of need in our country for everyone, yet people cannot see outside themselves for the greater good of humanity right now.

Healthcare workers can.

You came into this career wanting to make a positive difference, wanting to help others, to provide for patients and families in their time of need. I so desperately wish our country would show up for you in your time of need.

I know you are worn out. I know there are moments when you want to give up or wonder why you chose this career path. When you are feeling down, please remind yourself that you are seen and heard. Your work does matter and does make a difference. The work you do physically, mentally, and emotionally to meet the needs of patients and their family members is tremendous.

Not many can do what you can.

The immense amount of gratitude I feel for you cannot be measured.

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

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