Romanian doctors are making desperate appeals to the public to wear masks amid a coronavirus spike in the East European country.
As cases reached a record high of near 1,000 on Tuesday, some medics have posted pictures of themselves dressed in hazmat suits and masks. They described the grueling and stressful working conditions during the pandemic.
Iuliana Chiriac, a dentist, wrote: “My God! How hard is it to work? A day when there are 994 cases,” she said.
“What kind of nation are we? Why don’t you believe in the existence of the SARS-CoV-2 virus and protect yourself?”
Virus deniers have grown more vocal, ironically as cases have risen in Romania in recent weeks. Some skeptics have protested, brandishing religious icons, Romanian flags and other objects.
Hundreds of people infected with the virus have walked out of hospital or refused treatment saying they don’t believe in the virus.
“Why are you torturing us doctors who’ve been working for months in protective gear with high costs and no air conditioning? Chiriac wrote, posting pictures of several medics trussed up in PPE.
“Many of us are wearing diapers, unable to even drink water for hours on end,” she said on Facebook.
“Do you want there to be a disaster and for us to be thrown into mass graves, for you to understand that you need to protect yourselves?” she added.
“For Heaven’s sake, wear a stupid little mask correctly and protect others if you don’t care about yourselves! “
Romanian Health Minister Nelu Tataru on Wednesday said. “We’ve become the plague epicenter of Europe, not complying with rules and instigating non-compliance.”
