Abstract
Bhutan detected its first case of COVID-19 on March 5, 2020.1,2 Since then, Bhutan has reported 12 deaths with total cases of 31 927 as of May 25, 2022. 3 Bhutan had four national lockdowns so far, ranging from 21 to 42 days. COVID-19 has induced severe disruptions to the health and transportation system worldwide. 4 Transportation service in the hospital has been crucial during the pandemic yet received the least attention both from media and research.
Jigme Dorji Wangchuck National Referral Hospital (JDWNRH) is the country’s apex referral hospital providing tertiary health care services and has been managing most of the COVID-19 cases in the country. The hospital has only 20 drivers providing transportation services in the hospital. Hospital drivers (HDs) have been ferrying patients with COVID-19 for treatment, delivering medicines and food to isolation and quarantine facilities, and providing pick and drop services for emergency staff working in COVID-19 isolation facilities. They are also involved in the transportation of wastes stemming from quarantine and isolation facilities.
Hospital drivers have served in isolation duty at least 10 times, more than any other frontline worker. After each round of their isolation duty for 14 days, they serve quarantine for another 14 days to avoid community exposure. Ambulance drivers providing emergency services worked for 12 long hours in personal protective equipment, unlike other health workers who had the luxury to change the entire group every two weeks. However, the shortage of HDs has been aggravated by the pandemic inflicting huge stress on the existing workforce and the management. During the first two lockdowns, JDWNRH temporarily deployed drivers from other agencies to help transport nonemergency cases.
The hospital management employed different strategies to provide uninterrupted transportation services in the hospital. Hospital drivers were rostered for duty in advance, worked in turns, and ensured uninterrupted transportation services in the hospital. They worked round the clock, without availing a single day off during all four lockdowns. Young drivers without comorbidities worked in high-risk areas, while others worked in low-risk areas. They were trained in infection control and waste management and strict adherence to COVID-19 protocols kept them safe from COVID-19 infection. However, hospital management must ensure preventing work-related stress in drivers that could have a detrimental impact on their health. In the early phase of the pandemic, HDs experienced stigmatization in the community including their families due to the fear of COVID-19 infection as they worked closely with COVID-19 patients.
Hospital drivers form an important part of the health care team and must not be left behind. They are different from other drivers in their nature of work and the environment to which they are exposed. Routine relevant training on basic health care safety practices must be provided especially when they must work during such infectious disease outbreaks. Hospitals should have contingency plans in place to cover the COVID-19–infected drivers or those taking leave from work. Hospital management should continue providing constant support for these drivers to ensure they are physically and mentally fit for work.
Footnotes
Acknowledgements
The authors thank Mr Tshewang Norbu, Estate Manager, JDWNRH, for his comments on the article.
Declaration of Conflicting Interests
The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.
Funding
The author(s) received no financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.
