Read one of the vignettes from the Postscript: A Care Crisis in the Time of Covid-19
This postscript brings together a range of vignettes by some of the book’s contributors on dimensions of coronavirus-related developments in their respective context. Taking the care crisis concept as reference point, each vignette describes a concrete moment, development or process that offers reflections on the discussions in the book within the coronavirus context.
In this first online pre-print, Carsten Juul Jensen’s poetic rendering of an interview with a nurse volunteering for the Covid-19 unit conveys a feeling of how mundane and at the same time existential hospital care is, on so many levels. The remaining vignettes will be posted on the project website during 2021.
Published in
Lise Lotte Hansen, Hanne Marlene Dahl, Laura Horn (eds) (2021) A Care Crisis in the Nordic 兴发娱乐官网手机版客户端lfare States? Care work, gender equality and social sustainability (Bristol University Press)
Contact: Lise Lotte Hansen (liselh@ruc.dk)
Nurse Karen Works in the Covid-19 Unit in a Hospital
Carsten Juul Jensen (Professionsh?jskolen Absalon)
A poetic representation inspired by critical feminist methods to provide an interview with Nurse Karen who voluntarily accepted work at a unit for Covid-19 patients. The interview was conducted in spring 2020 in a former Department of Medical Gastroenterology.
兴发娱乐官网手机版客户端lcome
we showed up for our first shift
at a department that was totally deserted
like a bomb everyone had run from
no:
chairs, tables, beds, duvets, coffee cups or people
the introduction poster for the bedpan washer had been removed
many of the nursing staff stand shoulder to shoulder by the computer
A menopausal lady
hot flashes
hands sanitised for 30 seconds
blue lab coat tied around the waist and neck
blue mask tied well on the back and squeezed tightly around the nose
face shield on
gloves preferably long on
ready to care for patients
Mrs Jensen needs help with:
bed bath
getting dressed
wound care
eating
45 minutes blue lab coat untied
hands sanitised for 30 seconds
gloves off
hands sanitised for 30 seconds
blue lab coat stripped off
hands sanitised for 30 seconds
mask off
hands sanitised for 30 seconds
face shield off
hands sanitised for 30 seconds
make sure to only touch the clean parts, the parts that have not been in contact with patients
the menopausal lady is soaked as if she has run a half marathon
the lady needs to go to the changing room in the basement to change her uniform
did I sanitise my hands when I moved the gloves from the wrong bin?
Patients
Woman of 45 years is discharged
falls in her home
can’t breathe
readmitted
No one will die alone on my shifts
sitting in a lab coat, mask, face shield and gloves
holding hands
can the dying lady feel empathy behind my mask
in the visible part of my body – my eyes
The lady with dementia
who is already confused about where she is
thinks she has landed on an untouched planet
among people in blue with masks and face shields
who are you?
Remember that the doorknob is unclean – friend: sanitise your hands
COVID-19
The hygiene nurse knows all the hygiene rules
not afraid of infection
heavy breath
Covid-19 negative
training for the run across the Storeb?lt bridge for a half marathon
must give up after 12 km
can’t anymore
Covid-19 positive
Sick
fever with breathing difficulties in a big house isolated from family
Healthy
back in the Ambulatory Endoscopy Clinic
Covid-19 unit closed
tired
heavy breath
Hope to be ready for running a 4k in the future