Was Victoria's effort to reach zero COVID cases in 2020 really worth it?
"Absolutely," says University of Melbourne researcher Dr Jason Thompson, one of the authors of the modelling that paved Victoria's way out of lockdown last year.
"When you look at the number of lives that were saved last year when we put in all that effort, I don't think it has [been in vain]," he told ABC Radio Melbourne today.
But Dr Thompson said some people around him were reacting as though it had all been in vain after the state announced it was abandoning its COVID-zero goal on Wednesday.
"There was this feeling of helplessness and of hopelessness," Dr Thompson told ABC Radio Melbourne.
"But we did all these things for the people that we love and those around us."
'Why didn't we just let it run?'
To process his own emotions and help others around him, Dr Thompson wrote a thread on Twitter reflecting on the past 18 months.
His tweets and messages of reassurance have since been retweeted and engaged with by thousands of people, many of whom are no doubt Victorians enduring their sixth lockdown.
Dr Thompson started with his experience working 20 hours a day on Victoria's 2020 "escape plan" and how taxing it was when others would tell him: "You'll never get back to zero."
Dr Thompson said watching other states treat the Delta variant "like a sport," and then having to accept a similar reality was "frustrating".
But he goes on to say it was not only worth it, but also something to celebrate.
"So what was all that for, Victoria? Why didn't we just let it run?" he wrote.
Finding a 'new resolve'
Dr Thompson said his reflections had resonated with the community, with many saying it had made them cry and helped them to reflect.
He said he wanted to move people away from destructive emotions and into a "period of acceptance".
"We can't really get caught up in blame. Blame is a really destructive emotion for us to have and hold onto," he told ABC Radio Melbourne.
Dr Thompson said he hoped it would encourage the community to get vaccinated — and to focus on the light at the end of the tunnel.
"I really wanted to lead people towards the end of this — which is really about thinking about the positive view of yourself, the world and the future — because it will return."
