On August 25, Kasturba Hospital, Sevagram victoriously discharged a 65-year-old patient from Wardha district after a month-long battle with coronavirus. The patient and his family are full of praises for the entire team of the hospital.
In late July, Mr Ramesh (name changed) and his daughter developed fever, and began to cough. Both tested positive and were admitted to Kasturba Hospital on July 28. Mr Ramesh had decades old high blood pressure and diabetes and had had a heart attack before. He was not able to breathe nor was able to maintain oxygen levels because the virus had badly hit both lungs. His oxygen levels further dropped and he was put on invasive mechanical ventilation. Soon, his heart was not able to pump enough blood. After being on mechanical ventilator for 5 days, doctors decided to take him off the ventilation but continued to give him oxygen for several days. A team of doctors and nurses closely monitored him who managed to pull his life from the tightening jaws of death. The infection finally receded, lungs became clean and the heart started pumping blood effectively. Mr Ramesh took almost a month before he could recover from the illness and go home on 25 August.
“I have seen this patient going through a series of difficult phases during his journey with coronavirus. He had a stormy course in the hospital and needed aggressive treatment. We often wondered if we could save him but we never stopped trying. Now that he has gone home and is almost normal makes me feel so satisfied with the work we are doing”, said Dr Sumedh Jajoo (Associate Professor of Medicine) who treated this patient right from his admission. “Our job is not over, though. We continue to monitor him to fine tune medications and control blood glucose even after his discharge”, he added.
Dr Vishakha Jain (Professor of Medicine) said, “Treating such high risk patients is a challenging task. His age, BP, sugar, heart problems and bad lungs had put him at a very high risk. Nothing brings more joy in the hearts of doctors than watching a critically ill patient going home. We are happy to note that our efforts have paid off well”.
“Wardha was green until May 10. Now we are seeing a surge of patients affected with this virus every day. We are trying our best to treat them and help them recover. We have admitted 560 Covid patients so far, with close to 30 new admissions every day. The number of patients infected with the virus is rapidly climbing. We should not lower the guard, wear a mask, wash our hands and keep a safe distance”, said Dr Samir Yelwatkar (Nodal Officer for COVID-19 and Professor of Medicine)
“When seriously ill patients with COVID are admitted to the intensive care unit, we ensure that they are served round the clock by a team of nurses and doctors. They bring their knowledge, skills, commitment and dedication at the patient’s bedside. In a highly challenging and stressful ICU environment, they often spend sleepless nights, staying awake to monitor and treat serious patients. Many of them told an “I want to help people” tale when seeking entry into the medical profession. For these clinicians, the covid pandemic offers an opportunity to take on that role as never before”, said Dr SP Kalantri, Medical Superintendent, of the hospital.
“I would like to thank the entire team of Kasturba Hospital. He was so close to gone, and I was so afraid he wouldn’t make it. I owe a debt to them, which I shall never be able to pay off. Earlier, seeing my father’s deteriorating condition, we had decided to sell off our properties and shift him to Nagpur. But we decided to stay back in Sevagram. How could we ignore their efforts, dedication and patience? I can never forget them for saving my father’s life”, said teary-eyed Ms Surekha – Ramesh’s daughter who seemed to be groping for words to express her gratitude.