History is peppered with unsung heroes. Huge contributions and profound differences made by people who often reside in shadows of the era’s consciousness, eventually to receive untimely recognition for their service and achievement as the next, more enlightened society dusts off the history books for a re-reading.
Consider Australia’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander diggers, serving in conflicts from the Boer War to today, but only as recently as 2017 led the Anzac Day parades in recognition of their service. How Dorothy Vaughan, Mary Jackson and Katherine Gobels-Johnson put man on the moon as three black, female human computers but only shone in the light of recognition 47 years later thanks to a Hollywood movie. How it was Australian women who were deployed, untrained, as nurses for Spanish flu pandemic victims and who were erased from history alongside many of their victims when they died of a disease that society didn’t want to read about.
Speed forward now to 2021, and I’d like to think we’re a little less myopic when it comes to recognising those outside the limelight quietly making their totally vital contributions.
I asked our practice nurse how many doses of vaccine she has drawn up so far and she could only chuckle and keep on drawing up. I didn’t dare ask the reception staff how many phone calls they’ve taken, because the number is surely too many to count. Only the universe knows how many hours our managers have spent designing (and regularly redesigning) protocols for safe and efficient vaccination clinics. But I do know the answer to how many days off they’ve all had is ‘woefully few’ and how tired they are is ‘dead on my feet’.
So, this Chair’s report, I’m singing the praises of the staff in general practice and saying #thankyougeneralpractice to each and every one.
Dr Anita Muñoz
Chair, Victoria Faculty