I wake up at 3:30 am to prepare suhoor for my family, as my two children aren’t going to school, they too decide to wake up. I’ll pray Fajr and try to get some sleep, this is difficult as I’ll be waking up in three hours to get ready to go to work. The general public are not aware of all the services that a pharmacist can provide.
Working as a pharmacist in these unprecedented times has been both difficult and personally rewarding. My job is complex, I treat patients who suffer from substance abuse, therefore they rely on me to maintain a normal life. Many of my patients have physical and mental disabilities, they also suffer from multiple chronic conditions, and as a result, have a weak immune system making them highly prone to getting Covid-19. The safety of my patients is my number one concern; they are so dependent on me, they have built a trust with me.
I put my own health risk everyday, as I have asthma, and therefore am classed as high-risk. I have learnt to manage my condition by carrying inhalers with me. My family says I shouldn’t be working, but this is my job and if I stop working who will treat my patients?
Wearing PPE you do feel hot, you are tired, it creates a barrier between myself and patients, but I haven’t never felt so exhausted that I can’t do my job properly or that I need to stop fasting.
Ramadan helped me revitalise my health, body and mind. A month full of blessings, reflection and no matter how difficult it feels waking for suhoor. I always look forward to breaking iftar with my family. My children have been amazing during Ramadan, even though I have been working and seeing them less often. My daughter had her fifth birthday during suhoor, after work I made her a chocolate cake, she blew the glittered unicorn candles, that smile on her face made that hard day at work all worth it.