As Barbados and the world move on from the COVID-19 pandemic, people are asking: what next?The Barbados Association of Medical Practitioners (BAMP) reminds us that the pandemic still hovers, that people are still dying from the disease, and that Barbadians should exercise as much care as is necessary to protect themselves and their loved one from the viral illness.Given the systematic removal of most nationally enforced disease mitigation measures, there is a general acceptance that while COVID-19 remains a highly infectious and detrimental disease to many, the majority will survive if they become infected.However, while the population is enjoying the exhilaration of being “outside” again, there is a segment of our population that remains in fear and are somewhat helpless, no matter how well they try to protect themselves.Our elderly population and those with pre-existing health challenges are dying at a rate that should make us pause and reflect on whether we have chosen to make our elderly collateral damage in our ambition to return our economy and social life to normal.
