Work in the NHS or healthcare? Qatar Airways is giving away 100,000 free flights

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• Novice says:

  11 May11 May 16:01

  👍 to one of my favourite airline.

  They are possibly the only airline to maintain their good reputation in this crisis. This is true leadership.

• Baji Nahid says:

  11 May11 May 16:03

  Qatar are the best! puts some of the other airlines to shame!

  • marcw says:

    11 May11 May 17:21

    Except for modern slavery… if you check all the regulations and limited “freedom” cabin crew have, you may change your opinion. This is just cabin crew…. if you go to other workers in the State of Qatar…

    • Novice says:

      11 May11 May 17:31

      I know but my comment is down to my experience with the airline.

      I don’t make their rules and any political issues any country has is not my problem as a customer. In an ideal world, the world would fair, nice, equal, and moral. There would be no wars. No hunger, poverty. There would be peace and rainbows 🌈 everywhere. There would be no devastation to nature and no climate emergency. But this isn’t that world. And I don’t have the power to change things 😂

      • marcw says:

        11 May11 May 17:40

        You can vote with your money to fly airlines were staff have freedom and liberty to many many natural things, like getting married and even being pregnant. This is a reason dismiss you if you marry or get pregnant in the first 3 years joining QR.

        Yes, QR has many great things… but lacks many others.

        • Novice says:

          11 May11 May 17:55

          Yes I agree I could.

          But I’m selfish to an extent. If I earned my money through my constant slogging away over my work (writers don’t get paid as good as they should despite what you might think. We’re not all jk rowling; she also got just over a grand for her first manuscript which is totally unfair so good on her for getting the recognition and money 💰 later) then why should I not be maximising my travel experiences. Yes i agree it’s bad all slavery but they wouldn’t stop by one person choosing another airline.

          I have used many different airlines. Tbh I only think about my time, experience and destination.

      • J says:

        11 May11 May 18:00

        Yes but Qatar is state owned and an extension of the state. Qatar’s modern day slavery and persecution of gay people is not acceptable to me, so if there’s a choice (and there always is for me since Qatar will never be my destination) I’ll avoid their airline. I appreciate Qatar own vast swathes of the UK and a big percentage of BA so it’s not possible to entirely boycott them – but BA, Qantas, Lufthansa etc at least operate from democratic jurisdictions with employee protections, trade union rights, anti discriminatory laws etc. Although I don’t have that much sympathy for the almost wholly foreign workforce of the ME3 as they’re paid pretty well tax free, free accommodation etc and they know what the deal is. It’s the modern slavery in Qatar and treatment of less fortunate workers in the economy which are of bigger concern to me.

        • Novice says:

          11 May11 May 18:18

          I wholeheartedly agree with all this and honestly I’m against any injustice in the world but having said that if I started using my moral compass to guide my expenditures I would probably never get out of the house and possibly might never eat or live. I don’t think I would be happy with any business if I started using my moral compass. You might have read as I have mentioned I’m OCD so to some extent, in order to live my life I have to be selfish a bit and switch off thinking too much especially on my travels. I’m basically a reckless stress-head.

        • J says:

          11 May11 May 19:00

          Absolutely fair enough and I make no judgement about anyone else. Like most people I also use plenty of products/services from companies which are not particularly ethical.

        • Baji Nahid says:

          11 May11 May 19:07

          So you’re happy to use qatar but criticise them too? makes no sense! And talking about anti gay laws, these still somewhat persist in the UK till this day. Why can’t gay men donate blood?

        • J says:

          11 May11 May 23:02

          I don’t use Qatar. The ban on sexually active gay men, people who inject drugs, sex workers or people who’ve recent had a tattoo from giving blood is/was based on scientific facts – historically all of these groups were a higher risk. There’s been some developments in recent years – wide usage of PrEP amongst gay men has massively reduced the number of new infections. Policy perhaps hasn’t caught up with this – but the original policy was based on safety and facts. To compare this type of public health guideline to the violently homophobic laws in Qatar is possibly the stupidest comment I’ve ever read on here. Well done.

        • Novice says:

          11 May11 May 23:48

          You are completely right in this comment about blood donation. HIV is still a big risk and the fact that a lot of people don’t get tested unless ill etc.

          I remember watching a documentary about a scandal where some kids got infected blood and ended up with HIV I think. It was in a school or something. The doc was a few years ago.

  • Baji Nahid says:

    12 May12 May 00:01

    J you do know that many of these laws go BACK to the BRITISH EMPIRE right? It was the british empire that introduced these laws into those countries that are still upholding them. Like India did to decriminalise homosexuality, that was because of the laws of the BRITISH empire.

    • J says:

      12 May12 May 07:39

      Perfectly aware of this thanks. It’s demonstrated very well in Africa, where for example former Portugese colonies are typically a lot more tolerant and progressive than British colonies which inherited those laws. South Africa is a notable exception and was the first country in the world to put protection for LGBT people in the constitution. I’m puzzled what the point is you’re trying to make?

• jil says:

  11 May11 May 16:47

  Travel by Dec 2020, I still don’t believe it will be safe and convenient to travel in 6 months time.

  • Linda Dufresne says:

    11 May11 May 17:10

    Someone whos been on the front line may view travel as safer than what they’ve had to do.

  • Alex M says:

    11 May11 May 17:11

    Then please dont enter – more chances for others. Just kidding… 😉

• jack dogg says:

  11 May11 May 17:09

  “….to frontline healthcare professionals….”

  Its a nice idea, immediately ruined before it starts.

  Someone concluded that only those working within the NHS whose job is seen as “professional” were worthy of this reward.

  How “clinical researcher” and lab technician” are frontline, I have no idea. The vast majority of both will not be working on Covid-19, and you can probably count on the fingers of one hand the number of patients they actually interact with.

  How NHS community care workers, the vast majority of who are coming in daily contact with clients who are either Covid or at risk of Covid, is equally baffiling. The paramedic in the ambulance can appy, but the driver (who might not be) cannot.

  • Jill (Kinkell) says:

    11 May11 May 18:44

    My son is a lab worker in a major hospital processing all manner of samples . He does not have direct patient contact but he sure as hell deals with patient bodily fluids from ICU patients to GP samples. Who do you think processes the tests and results?.

    • jack doog says:

      11 May11 May 19:30

      One assumes dealing with bodily fluid and samples containing potentially highly infectious diseases is what he was employed to do, and he is therefore working in an environment were he habitually gets the mandated protection (long before covid-19). Swirling one test tube is pretty much the same as swirling another one, as long as you have the right protection

      As opposed to frontline workers many of who are going in with bugger all protection.

      • Jonathan Pang says:

        11 May11 May 20:40

        I’m as doctor and I disagree with your perspective.

        Lab techs are just as essential than those who get more FaceTime with the public.

        All of us are just doing our jobs, we don’t ask for anything more. Still it is nice to catch a break every now and then, so I am grateful to Qatar and other businesses for the giveaway!

    • JohnG says:

      11 May11 May 21:28

      @Jill: I wouldn’t waste your time. Anyone who sees a promotion as completely ruined because, god forbid, a lab technician might actually be allowed to benefit from it isn’t going to listen to rational points. Good luck to your son if he enters, and my thanks for the important and underappreciated work he does.

  • James says:

    11 May11 May 22:16

    I’ve just submitted, will see what happens. It asks for Hospital ID number but I’ve never heard that before, anyone got any ideas? I just put the hospitals switchboard number lol

• BSI1978 says:

  11 May11 May 17:19

  Do we think Radiographers are captured by the above?

  One assumes so given their work etc but not wholly clear.

  • Rob says:

    11 May11 May 18:00

    I’d be looking at what my NHS ID badge said on it ….

• Andrew says:

  11 May11 May 17:50

  It is great that they recognise the efforts of pharmacists. So far pharmacies have kept their doors open while GP surgeries lock their doors and turn people away.

• BRIAN RICHARDSON says:

  11 May11 May 18:35

  mMy wife is not a nurse but a health care worker on a corona virus ward – is she not entitled to an entry in this?

  • Rob says:

    11 May11 May 18:46

    Does she have ID which will convince Qatar to let her fly? That’s the bottom line.

• Alan says:

  11 May11 May 18:56

  The small print says taxes (not surcharges) still apply. Probably not huge but not totally free.

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