Give all of these workers a handsome raise, and actual minimum wage. Saying "thank you for your hard work" is nowhere near enough.

I love this article because it recognizes so many people that were never mentioned during the pandemic. As a nurse, I knew when I signed on for the job that it may be necessary for me to risk my life to care for patients. Obviously I was ok with that. But so many of these people never dreamed that would be asked of them. They came to work day after day, night after night. I always say they were the true heroes. Doctors and nurses, we signed on knowing this level of risk. They did not. They came anyway. We could never ever have done this without them.

Be sure you don’t forget the doctors, nurses, and other personnel who came out of retirement to help. There was a doctor, in Italy if I’m not mistaken, who was in his 80s or 90s, who came out of retirement to help, because he was already old and lived his life, and wanted to give the younger doctors a breather so they wouldn’t get sick and risk dying or being debilitated (Long COVID) while they were still young. I doubt he was the only one. The good ones never quit. Medicine is a calling, not a career.

These are the people who kept us safe, sane and alive during one of the worst times during a pandemic. Not only did they battle COVID-19 they had to deal with the misinformers, the anti-maskers, the anti-vaxxers and the various protesters. They kept things clean to prevent passing on the infection. Treated those who had Covid and those with other illnesses. Helped those who struggled to cope with the loss of a loved one or their own last breaths. I could not wish for better and more dedicated people in the world, and I hope their services in their professions are recognized financially and not just in online posts because their work is still not over. Now, I'm off to fix these leaks I found in my face around the eye region

Where the hell were these people getting full body PPE? I worked the covid unit at my hospital from the day covid arrived to the day the the hospital transitioned covid patients out to all units amongst the normal population (like they do with influenza). At the height of things, I felt lucky to have a paper gown and shield, knowing other hospitals were essentially making staff wear garbage bags. Was definitely bothered by the fact that we were forced to reuse a single-use surgical mask for an entire shift though... stored over and over in the dreaded paper bag (yes, I said surgical mask, not N-95)... that is - until about a year and a half in, when *suddenly* the hospital thought N-95's might be a good idea. The photos look nice and all, but they don't paint a true picture of the reality that most of us experienced.

I worked in the Covid ICU as a nurse. It was challenging. We were called heroes. Now we are expendable employees and don't get paid what we're worth. It's disheartening.