As the end of a year draws nigh, it usually provides an opportunity to be able to review and reflect on what has taken place over the previous 12 months. What a year 2020 has been as we look back. At the end of 2019 no one could have foreseen or predicted what 2020 would bring. The COVID-19 pandemic has turned all of our lives upside down in terms of our home life, work life, social life and finances. Health-care professionals have worked tirelessly in difficult circumstances including working long hours, being redeployed to unfamiliar areas, being separated from family and contracting the virus themselves. as a result of the pandemic the area of public health has been thrust into the spotlight of health care.
While the virus has reached and infiltrated all of the population, it appears that those areas and groups worse affected by the virus are where health inequalities are the greatest. This is just not in terms of those who have contracted the virus and may be suffering long-term effects, but also from a financial perspective as many jobs have been lost in sectors of the economy where many who experience the greatest inequalities are employed.
Sadly, it has taken a global pandemic for this spotlight to be shone on the importance of public health and the need to reduce such inequalities. Hopefully, this will be a call to action for a new long-term cross government strategy to emerge to reduce health inequalities and provide increased investment in public health. Such a strategy needs to include much-needed investment in school health services and child mental health as well as community and voluntary youth services for children and young people. Those working with school age children can and must play a huge role in delivering the public health agenda and helping to reduce such inequalities to ensure there are equal opportunities for all.
However, the pandemic has also seen some rays of sunlight. There have been countless examples of where people have rallied round to support others. This has included the heroic efforts of Sir Tom Morgan who at the age of 100 walked around his garden to raise £32 million for the NHS, Tobias Weller who has cerebral palsy and was inspired by Sir Tom to walk a marathon to raise money for a local hospital, hundreds of thousands of people clapping to support the NHS, footballer Marcus Rashford campaigning for children in need to have free school meals through the holidays, those working in food banks and everyday acts of hope and kindness carried out by neighbours for others. Within the darkness of this pandemic, these rays of sunlight have reaffirmed that hope and kindness exist in abundance within our communities, which gives us encouragement and confidence for the future as we look forward to 2021. After all providing hope and kindness to others is the very essence of what being a nurse and health professional is all about.
Take care and stay safe.