OPEN LETTER TO FAYZAH MUTLIB
On behalf of families throughout New Zealand, we offer our sincere condolences and prayers following the loss of your grandfather.
To not be able to say a final farewell in person makes the loss of a loved one even tougher.
We acknowledge that we live in extraordinary times due to the COVID pandemic. But as a close family member, you had every right to expect that the rules would be flexible – humane enough that you would be able to see the man who raised you “like a daughter” for the final time.
As a doctor, you would have been well aware of the medical precautions which could have been taken to enable such a visit.
As an ICU doctor on the frontline, you would been aware of – and used to using -appropriate PPE (personal protective equipment) to ensure the safety of other hospital staff and patients while you were there.
As someone who has made the effort to be double-vaccinated and tested daily, you have also done what we are being told needs to be done, as we attempt to go back to some level of ‘normal’.
But somewhere in the midst of the regulation and rules, we lost sight of what it is to be human. We lost sight of compassion. We lost common sense.
You have trained for years, and you spend long hours saving lives and treating the most vulnerable. You do what you think is best for each and every individual, on a case by case basis, taking all factors into account. We apologise that those in charge of our country did not afford you the same care and support when you were in need.
On behalf of the many New Zealand families who are embarrassed and ashamed by the way you have been treated, we are sorry.
Together, we call on the Government to allow you to attend your grandfather’s funeral.
It’s the very least they can do.
Family first.
(Photo credit: 1News)
