By Ffion Mabale
“Go back to your country! Put a mask on!”
Xenophobic sentiments like this were frequently directed toward Filipino Americans working in healthcare during the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. At that time, public health officials advised citizens to practice quarantining, social distancing, and masking up. Despite these general safety precautions, the Filipino American community faced greater exposure to the virus as frontline healthcare workers. Staying in quarantine and physically distancing themselves from patients was not an option.
Since the pandemic began, immigrant Filipinx nurses have made unquantifiable contributions to the American healthcare system. These critical members of our frontline workforce remain undervalued and overexploited in spite of their contributions. However, we have an opportunity to better protect our healthcare workers and ourselves by putting our masks back on.
The Filipinx healthcare worker
If you have ever been treated at a major medical institution, there is a good chance that a Filipino nurse was part of your care team. As stated by Human Resources for Health, nurses comprised an average of 19% of all emigrating Filipino professional, medical and technical workers over a six-year period. This ongoing brain drain—mass emigration of highly-educated and skilled workers—leads to the exploitation of Filipino American nurses overseas. In addition to the traumas of leaving their homeland, immigrants also face harsher working conditions but they feel powerless to speak out against them. As a result, migrant workers like Filipinx nurses experience increased work stressors and exploitative labor practices.
According to a 2020 report from National Nurses United, only 4% of registered nurses in the U.S. were Filipino, yet they accounted for 54% of the nurses of color who died from COVID-19. Unlike other Asian ethnic groups, Filipino Americans experience higher rates of chronic health conditions like hypertension, heart disease, and diabetes, which place them at greater risk for COVID-19-related medical complications. The intersecting strains on health outcomes for Filipinx healthcare workers create seemingly invisible health disparities. These individuals work tirelessly to keep us safe. Nevertheless, they are met with an endless barrage of racist rhetoric from those they aim to protect. Many people in my community are struggling with burnout from the compounded impacts of racism and stressful work demands in the ongoing pandemic.
Masking as a primary preventative tool
As any public health professional will tell you, protecting communities at increased risk should always center preventive measures. Besides getting vaccinated, one of the most effective methods to suppress COVID-19 contraction is wearing a mask.
The COVID-19 pandemic never ended and neither should our efforts to protect one another. Wearing a mask, especially in essential spaces like grocery stores and on public transportation, is an overlooked preventive measure. Scientists from Rostock University have found that even with lower infection rates, there could be up to a 65% reduction in COVID-19-related mortality if only 80% of people wore masks in public. Incorporating mask-wearing into our everyday lives is a practical way for regular folks like us to protect both our communities and ourselves. In cases where infection is not avoided, research published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health advises that masking can reduce the infectious dose of SARS-CoV-2 and thereby, the resultant symptoms and severity of contracting the disease.
Reducing the amount of people who contract COVID-19 also reduces the workload for our overburdened nurses and other healthcare professionals. In turn, this increases their capacity to treat other pressing medical concerns in addition to saving resources for other patients in need. By putting our masks back on, we bring community care into our everyday lives and ensure that we are protecting the most vulnerable groups like Filipinx healthcare workers.
Accessing COVID-19 resources
Masking is an expensive habit to sustain without support. Thanks to existing mutual aid organizations, there are accessible ways to engage in this critical preventive measure without breaking the bank.
In Washington state, there are Mask Blocs stationed in several cities including Seattle, Olympia, and Bellingham. These organizations provide free resources to anyone in need. Information about distribution centers can be accessed on their respective social media accounts, primarily on Instagram (check out @maskblocseattle).
From high-quality masks to testing kits and educational materials, your local mask bloc has your back. If you can afford to provide your own masks or to donate to organizations like these, you can always go that extra mile. It is never too late to show up for your community. Whether you plan to start wearing a mask again for the first time in years or you never stopped, masking up will benefit us all.