Two of the five patients of the Covid-19 pandemic who were discharged on Monday in Lagos say they owe their survival to the dogged work of the medical team who gave their all to save them.
The five patients who had been receiving treatment at the Infectious Disease Hospital, Yaba, Lagos, were discharged after further tests carried out on them returned negative.
“I was admitted last Sunday,” said one of the five lucky patients who walked away from the hospital on
Monday. “Initially there were challenges. The following day, they brought beds, masks and some equipment.”
The patient, who did not want his identity in print, said it was human for the caregivers to be scared for their own lives, explaining that when he was first brought in he was left for a while unattended and he slept off.
He said the government had to do what it will take to encourage them, including offering them a good life insurance cover.
However, Gbenga Omotosho, Lagos State commissioner for information and strategy, told BusinessDay that the state government has a life assurance cover for all the staff.
Another patient said he was kept on admission at the hospital for exactly two weeks and was happy to recover.
“I came in here on March 15, and after the test returned positive, I was asked to come back the next day. So I was admitted,” the patient said. “Initially, there were hitches but it later turned out fine. The health workers did fine, all our challenges were attended to. I’m a living witness together with my other colleagues.”
Expressing hope, he said people should not panic as the virus could be defeated.
“We can beat it. I want to assure others that this is not their resting place. Encourage yourselves, take your medications and in no distant time, you will get out of here,” the patient said. “However, I want to appeal to the Federal and Lagos State Governments that they should identify and decorate all those workers who have volunteered to work in such difficult circumstances, so as to serve as encouragement to others. If they are not here as first responders, many would die.”
The patients thanked the Lagos State governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, for his support and proactiveness and called for increase in the number of workers at the centre.
The total number of recoveries in Nigeria is now eight. Three patients, including the Italian index case and two Nigerians, had earlier been treated and discharged from the Lagos facility.
Lagos remains the epicentre of the coronavirus in Nigeria, having 68 of the total 111 cases so far recorded in the country.
Oluwaseun Ayodeji Osowobi, the only female of the five discharged patients, took to Twitter to narrate her ordeal and how she escaped death.
Osowobi said she contracted the disease during a post-Commonwealth event she attended in the United Kindgom (UK).
“Life finds ways of throwing LEMON at me. I’ve struggled with coming forward, but I want to inspire hope. I returned to Nigeria from the UK post-Commonwealth event (I totally enjoyed) and fell ill. As a responsible person, I self-isolated. Days after, I tested positive for COVID-19,” she wrote via her personal handle @AyodejiOsowobi.
“Before returning, I had planned several interviews, I was scheduled to start a fantastic consultancy job & was also expecting to sign a contract worth millions. I lost them all. I had to self-isolate and also inform people I came in close contact with to get tested. My friend & I kept calling @NCDCgov to get tested. What if we didn’t persist?” she wrote.
Osowobi said at 12am, an ambulance was at her house. She woke from sleep and was crying. She got to isolation centre, but no one was there to receive her. She waited in the ambulance for two hours.
“The nurses eventually came out and treated me like a plague. I sat in the ambulance feeling rejected. No questions about how I felt. So many questions about my travel history, same information I had provided to NCDC and Lagos State Government during profiling.
“After two hours, I was taken to my space. I felt lonely, bored and disconnected from the outside world. Few days after, another patient came in. We bonded. Days later, patients trooped in. Are people observing self-isolation & social distancing? I was so scared for Nigeria.
“The next days were tough. No appetite. The nausea, vomit and stooling was unbearable. I’m a blood type A & #COVID19 dealt with me. I’ll share daily symptoms & recovery process in a video tomorrow. I thought I was going to die and contemplated a succession plan for @StandtoEndRape.
“I was on drugs daily. Sometimes, I‘d take eight tablets in the morning, 13 tablets in the afternoon, 10 at night. My system threw everything out! Water, food, soap and all disgusted me. But I’d look at the wall and force myself to stay hydrated.
“Days after, the doctors shared a good news that I tested negative. I shared this news with family and friends! My blood sample was taken and I also tried to donate my plasmapheresis to help others. I hoped to be discharged. I waited to be discharged, but for two days, nothing happened.
“I was unsure of what was going on. Why haven’t I been discharged? Should I be in the same ward? Could I get re-infected? I was worried but remained calm. On the third day, doctors said, ‘Well, we worked with the info we had of you testing negative, but one result came back positive. You’ll stay a few more days. You know we take nose, mouth and sputum samples.
“‘Am I still positive flushed face?’ I asked. ‘No, you’re negative,’ the doctor replied. The doctor apologised for the delay. I was anxious to go home but remained calm. I wanted to be free from this pain.
“I continued the medication and asked to be in a separate ward. Sadly, I remained in the same ward as all others rooms were full. My ward had people who were positive. What if I get re-infected? For them, I was a beacon of hope and they needed me gone to register the progress.
“My family and friends were becoming anxious. People in my ward who earlier celebrated the news of my result suddenly lost hope. ‘Why are you still here? You shouldn’t be here with us. You should be separated from us now…’ people in my ward muttered. I tried to calm them.
“Today, I am PROUD to inform you that I MURDERED COVID-19 and have tested NEGATIVE TWICE! I HAVE BEEN DISCHARGED! I bless God for His mercies. The nurses at IDH Yaba were fab. They deserve accolades for their hardwork. Thank you Governor @jidesanwoolu for coming to see me. Thanks to @ProfAkinAbayomi, the health team at IDH + Lagos State. The food was good! Smiling face with heart-shaped eyes. Thanks to @dondekojo for helping me get help. Thanks to my chat buddy, @akintonmide. Thank you @KelechiAFC & @lailajohnsonsal for the mental & material support. They protected my identity! Smiling face with heart-shaped eyes.
“Huge thanks to my family, @Triciabiz & Sola Odetola who were my backbone. Smiling face with three hearts Some stigmatised me based on a newspaper article with subtle messages like ‘Why did she come back to Nigeria?’ Face with tears of joy. Nigeria is my home. Coronavirus is NOT a death sentence. People can survive and I HAVE!”
Joshua Bassey
