Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by this author are their own and do not represent the official position of the Barbados TODAY Inc.
by Jade Gibbons
“Before COVID-19 if I needed to blow off steam, I would play a shooting game. My favourite weapon on Destiny 2 is any pulse rifle. I define adventure as doing something that is a little outside your box. An example: going to Off Road Fury with my friend Carolyn. We drove go-karts through cane fields in St. Philip. I was surprised that I enjoyed it.
I see myself as an introvert. In 2019, my favourite liming spot was my bedroom. My TV was there, my phone, my laptop. If I wanted to read a book, a book was there. If I wanted to draw, my drawing pad was there. Before COVID-19, I was working in A&E. I didn’t have a car yet, so I’d catch the bus and then walk through town to the hospital.
I used to push myself hard because I knew people were waiting in A&E long. I would push myself, sometimes I would break for lunch, sometimes I might not. Then I’d come home, shower and then go on social media, maybe play some game on my PlayStation.
“I slouch most of the time or all of the time. I would say my eyes are my best asset. I am someone that the community can depend on.
I am very independent. I stand for equity and equality. To me that means you should treat everyone with fairness. Not everyone needs the same kind of treatment, but I think everyone does deserve to be treated fairly.
I don’t like people being taken advantage of. Before COVID-19, I was hoping to specialise in radiology, soon get married and have kids before I was 30. I’ll be 30 next year and it’s not the same. “Christmas 2019, I was living with my ex-boyfriend.
I prepared Christmas lunch. I remember doing most of the work. I baked my first ham. I remember turning it on the wrong side, so it didn’t look very presentable. But it tasted good. My little sister came over. We ate, then we played Scrabble. I first heard that there was a new disease stirring in China sometime in December 2019. I remember a friend telling me “you should wear a mask at work.”
And I was like that’s silly, why would I do that? When I first learnt that COVID-19 spread outside of China I was like, oh dear! As a doctor I was thinking my history taking needs to include people’s travel history which is not necessarily something that we always focused on.
Before, taking someone’s travel history wasn’t relevant but it was now going to be. As a regular Bajan I was like “Mia betta shutdown de airport.” As a woman I was thinking clearly now is not the time to get pregnant because they were saying that pregnant women are at higher risk.
“I am currently a senior house officer on internal medicine and was in that department during the first lockdown in March 2020. I was working every day during the first lockdown except maybe some Sundays.
Being on call then presented new difficulties because normally when you are on call you might order food, but restaurants were closed.
So you had to bring food to eat. You had to bring lunch, dinner, breakfast for the next day and lunch for the next day. Thankfully, my ex-boyfriend prepared all my meals for me, so I didn’t have to worry about getting food.
I did have some dark days during the first lockdown. But there was always someone I could talk to. I love that about my community. There was also good support in my department. During break, we would sit down and talk and momentarily forget about the stressors.
We made the conscious decision to leave COVID-19 out of the lunchroom. The comradery among us doctors increased. The lunchroom actually became a place of escape and I don’t remember it being like that before COVID-19.
My senior during the first lockdown was Dr. Addison St. John and he was really a great help. He is really funny and outgoing. I would say that having him as a senior was the best thing that could have happened.
During the recently concluded National Pause Dr. Michelle Ince was a great help to me. I found that I could talk to her about anything. She’s very approachable and I will miss being on her team. I will miss spending time with her. I would like to let her know to keep being you.
“My fondest childhood memories are those of my dad. When I am driving, I often remember the rides in the car I use to take with him and the conversations we would have. I remember him asking me “what’s on your mind?” He used to ask me that a lot. The saddest day of my life I was in 2nd form. I cannot remember what class I had been in.
They called me to the deputy principal’s office. My mother was there. The Religious Studies teacher was there. Then they said we found your father in his house this morning. I was like “oh.” Then they said he passed away. And I was like “oh.” It took like a few seconds before I cried. I was close with my father.
“Christmas 2020, I had already split with my ex-boyfriend and changed houses. I was working and saw the sicker patients which is what we normally do on holidays. I see the world as a place that I need to make better.
Yes, I do still dream. By the time I am 50, I would like to have my own practice. I would like to be the mother of some budding, aspiring leaders of Barbados. And I would like to be a loving and dear wife to some lucky guy.”
Jade Gibbons is an arts and business graduate with a keen interest in social issues and film-making. See https://www.jadegibbons246.com
“Before COVID-19 if I needed to blow off steam, I would play a shooting game. My favourite weapon on Destiny 2 is any pulse rifle. I define adventure as doing something that is a little outside your box. An example: going to Off Road Fury with my friend Carolyn. We drove go-karts through cane fields in St. Philip. I was surprised that I enjoyed it.
I see myself as an introvert. In 2019, my favourite liming spot was my bedroom. My TV was there, my phone, my laptop. If I wanted to read a book, a book was there. If I wanted to draw, my drawing pad was there. Before COVID-19, I was working in A&E. I didn’t have a car yet, so I’d catch the bus and then walk through town to the hospital.
I used to push myself hard because I knew people were waiting in A&E long. I would push myself, sometimes I would break for lunch, sometimes I might not. Then I’d come home, shower and then go on social media, maybe play some game on my PlayStation.
“I slouch most of the time or all of the time. I would say my eyes are my best asset. I am someone that the community can depend on.
I am very independent. I stand for equity and equality. To me that means you should treat everyone with fairness. Not everyone needs the same kind of treatment, but I think everyone does deserve to be treated fairly.
I don’t like people being taken advantage of. Before COVID-19, I was hoping to specialise in radiology, soon get married and have kids before I was 30. I’ll be 30 next year and it’s not the same. “Christmas 2019, I was living with my ex-boyfriend.
I prepared Christmas lunch. I remember doing most of the work. I baked my first ham. I remember turning it on the wrong side, so it didn’t look very presentable. But it tasted good. My little sister came over. We ate, then we played Scrabble. I first heard that there was a new disease stirring in China sometime in December 2019. I remember a friend telling me “you should wear a mask at work.”
And I was like that’s silly, why would I do that? When I first learnt that COVID-19 spread outside of China I was like, oh dear! As a doctor I was thinking my history taking needs to include people’s travel history which is not necessarily something that we always focused on.
Before, taking someone’s travel history wasn’t relevant but it was now going to be. As a regular Bajan I was like “Mia betta shutdown de airport.” As a woman I was thinking clearly now is not the time to get pregnant because they were saying that pregnant women are at higher risk.
“I am currently a senior house officer on internal medicine and was in that department during the first lockdown in March 2020. I was working every day during the first lockdown except maybe some Sundays.
Being on call then presented new difficulties because normally when you are on call you might order food, but restaurants were closed.
So you had to bring food to eat. You had to bring lunch, dinner, breakfast for the next day and lunch for the next day. Thankfully, my ex-boyfriend prepared all my meals for me, so I didn’t have to worry about getting food.
I did have some dark days during the first lockdown. But there was always someone I could talk to. I love that about my community. There was also good support in my department. During break, we would sit down and talk and momentarily forget about the stressors.
We made the conscious decision to leave COVID-19 out of the lunchroom. The comradery among us doctors increased. The lunchroom actually became a place of escape and I don’t remember it being like that before COVID-19.
My senior during the first lockdown was Dr. Addison St. John and he was really a great help. He is really funny and outgoing. I would say that having him as a senior was the best thing that could have happened.
During the recently concluded National Pause Dr. Michelle Ince was a great help to me. I found that I could talk to her about anything. She’s very approachable and I will miss being on her team. I will miss spending time with her. I would like to let her know to keep being you.
“My fondest childhood memories are those of my dad. When I am driving, I often remember the rides in the car I use to take with him and the conversations we would have. I remember him asking me “what’s on your mind?” He used to ask me that a lot. The saddest day of my life I was in 2nd form. I cannot remember what class I had been in.
They called me to the deputy principal’s office. My mother was there. The Religious Studies teacher was there. Then they said we found your father in his house this morning. I was like “oh.” Then they said he passed away. And I was like “oh.” It took like a few seconds before I cried. I was close with my father.
“Christmas 2020, I had already split with my ex-boyfriend and changed houses. I was working and saw the sicker patients which is what we normally do on holidays. I see the world as a place that I need to make better.
Yes, I do still dream. By the time I am 50, I would like to have my own practice. I would like to be the mother of some budding, aspiring leaders of Barbados. And I would like to be a loving and dear wife to some lucky guy.”
Jade Gibbons is an arts and business graduate with a keen interest in social issues and film-making. See https://www.jadegibbons246.com
