A predicted 2,997 deaths from Breast Cancer in Australia will occur in 2020.

This is compared to 549 deaths from COVID-19 so far. If one doubles that figure for the rest of 2020, that is still far less than people dying from Breast Cancer.

Then there are those dying due to other medical conditions in Australia. These people are also forgotten and not recognised, with people directly affected seeming as if they have been left alone and treated like food rotting in a compost bin.

How are people dying from a range of medical conditions in Australia better recognised in these difficult times and how does one get empathy out to these people? I have tried during a COVID-19 epidemic, but have found to do so very difficult.

Nathan,

I hope nobody brings up suicides: Patrick McGorry in today's Australian points out that suicide numbers have not increased over last year's.

Just getting in first :)

Joe

Dear Nathan,

Yes there are people dying from all sorts of illnesses
in our country. However most of these illnesses are not
contageous (such as breast cancer that you mentioned).
They are not spreadable diseases - such as our current
pandemic - COVID-19 is. That's possibly why we don't hear
about them.

Also in this country we are very lucky in that - there
are support groups and help available - to cope with
illnesses such as cancer and mental issues - be it
depression, dementia, alzheimers, suicides, and many others.
I know from personal experience that help is only a phone
call away. I was diagnosed with cancer a while back, and my
mother suffered from dementia. Copying with it all was not
easy - but having someone to talk to helped a lot.

I wonder how many of these Pandemic casualties die with COVID-19 rather than from it !

Individual,

Are you channelling Trump :) I suspect that pretty soon, to minimise the number of deaths from the virus in the US, Trump will demand that hospitals do not count anybody as dying from the virus who has just possibly died from something else, even if it is a complementary feature, like pneumonia, actually brought on by the virus.

Good trick :)

Joe

I was thinking this morning that I am sick and tired of hearing the 'score' for deaths and new cases of the China virus every day. Yes, Nathan. There are more people dying of other things than the virus - year in and year out - and we are not constantly nagged about it. Sadly, it's all down to our rotten politicians, our rotten media, and the rotten 'experts' who are enjoying the limelight. As soon as I hear mention of the virus now, I switch off. Not interested. Don't care.