Bringing a ray of hope to the State’s fight against COVID-19, a 78-year-old man with diabetes, hypertension, and asthma, returned home on Friday after recovering in a record 14 days. He is the oldest person to recover from the disease in Karnataka so far.
When the senior citizen, Hakeemuddin Johar, walked out of the Emergency and Trauma Care Centre in Victoria Hospital premises on Friday, a team of doctors and paramedical staff bid him an emotional farewell. With 12 of the 13 who succumbed to the disease so far in the State aged above 60, it was an overwhelming feeling for them to see the oldest patient walk out infection-free.
Mr. Johar, a resident of Gurappanapalya, tested positive on April 3 and was admitted at the Emergency and Trauma Care Centre on the same day. Hailing from Gujarat, Mr. Johar is settled in Bengaluru for the last 10 years and the family is into hardware business. He along with his wife, Gulshan Johar, had gone to attend their grandson’s wedding in Dubai on March 12. They left Bengaluru on February 17 and returned on March 17 as the wedding got cancelled owing to the pandemic.
“A few days after our return, I developed breathing problems. As I have been asthmatic for the last 10 years, I went to my regular doctor at Malathi Manipal Hospital on April 1 where my samples were collected. Subsequently, they referred me to Victoria Hospital and till I came here, I did not know I had the infection,” Mr. Johar told The Hindu after his discharge on Friday.
‘Never lost hope’
Attributing his recovery to the “dedicated” team of doctors, nurses, and other staff at the Trauma Care Centre, he said he never felt depressed or lost hope.
“While my family kept me engaged through video calls, the doctors took special care of me, especially because of my age. I am grateful to the centre’s special officer Balaji Pai and nodal officer Asima Banu, who constantly monitored my progress. They kept an eye on me through other patients and never made me realise I was infected,” he said. His message to other COVID-19 patients: “Do not panic or worry that you are infected with the novel virus. Be confident and follow the doctors’ advice, take precautions, and take medications regularly.”
The doctors, who were appreciative of the patient’s fighting spirit and determination to come out of the infection, said this patient’s two negative results in a span of 24 hours, has boosted the morale of other 40 patients in the COVID ward. “After two deaths in the ICU in the last two days, it was heartening to see him recover despite his comorbidities,” said Dr. Asima Banu.
“It is extremely challenging for us to take care of the elderly, especially if they have comorbidities. His oxygen saturation was low when he came to the hospital and he felt breathless at times. He was put on high flow oxygen in the ward and we strived hard to keep him active at times. We regularly sent him videos on breathing exercises and motivational talks on his phone. The biggest challenge was to ensure that he did not get stressed or anxious. Because that would have affected his sugar and blood pressure levels,” said the doctor.
Although discharged, he will be in home quarantine for 14 days and monitored by doctors regularly.
Published - April 17, 2020 11:30 pm IST
