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It can be frustrating hearing the rising number of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) cases in the country, but as we work our way towards flattening the curve, we should also celebrate the victories — the number of patients who have recovered from the disease. It’s a reminder that COVID-19 is not a death sentence, as proven by these two male patients who were recently discharged after testing negative for the virus.
Second COVID-19 patient discharged from Laguna hospital
A 38-year-old male patient who overcame the virus was recently discharged from Unihealth Southwoods Hospital and Medical Center (USHMC), a private hospital in Biñan, Laguna. And it seems the whole hospital celebrated with him!
In a video uploaded by the hospital’s nursing department, the male patient, upon exiting the elevators, is welcomed with thunderous applause by hospital staff who are all lined up in the lobby. He’s even showered with confetti and presented with a certificate!
This is not the first time that the hospital has done this — they did the same thing with their first patient who also recovered from COVID-19 — but no matter how many times you watch the videos, it is still a heartwarming sight. (Watch that inspiring video here.)
According to Tess Alcantara, the chief nurse of USHMC and the hospital’s administrative officer, she came up with the idea of letting the staff line up in the lobby and giving the recovered patients resounding applause because they wanted to make the patients feel that they are winners — after all, many of them were without family and friends while overcoming the disease. (You can see her in the video above shaking the patient's hand.)
“We sought the permission of the patient if we can take a video of their discharge,” Alcantara tells SmartParenting.com.ph. “[It’s also] to tell the public that this disease is curable and to inspire people especially other frontliners to give their best shot [in fighting the virus].”
ADVERTISEMENT - CONTINUE READING BELOWShe adds, “It’s also for my staff who were discriminated and prevented from going home to their boarding houses.”
Alcantara tells Smart Parenting that two more patients are scheduled to be discharged today, April 5, 2020. “We at USHMC would like to send a message of hope to all. We will continue to care and serve our patient with great commitment and compassion,” she shares. “We will remain steadfast in all our endeavors. Mahirap, pero kinakaya.”
83-year-old lolo recovers from COVID-19 in Marikina
By now we should know that the ones at the highest risk for a bad outcome if infected with COVID-19 are the elderly and those with chronic illnesses such as diabetes, heart disease, and lung disease. But it is still possible for our senior citizens to make a recovery — just ask this 83-year-old lolo who was able to win against the disease!
In a public Facebook post, Ella Gaspar shared her father’s story: On March 27, 2020, she thought that she would lose her father to COVID-19.
CONTINUE READING BELOWwatch now“Tuesday last week (March 24) I brought him to the emergency department because of diarrhea and easy fatigability. He was classified as an elderly PUI (patient under investigation), thus admitted,” Gaspar shares.
The following four days, Ella says, were the most difficult period for her father, who was named in the comments as Rene. “Hindi makakain. Pagod na pagod. Inip na inip. Gusto na daw niyang magpahinga. Ibigay na lang daw naming ang room niya sa mas batang pasyente,” Gaspar writes. “To compound the problem, his repeat chest x-ray revealed progressing pneumonia.”
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And then the worst news came: Rene’s test results came back and he was positive for COVID-19. “Sasabog na ang dibdib ko. Hindi ako makaiyak kasi ayaw kong makita ni daddy na umiiyak ako,” Ella recalls.
Ella sought prayers for healing from her immediate family and friends. But hers was different. “I sought a different kind of prayer — swift, easy, and peaceful death for daddy. Hindi ko kakayanin na makita pa si dad na hirap na hirap huminga, ma-intubate at mamaay.”
ADVERTISEMENT - CONTINUE READING BELOWRene also wished to receive the last rite/anointing of the sick. But in a miraculous turn of events, Rene’s pulmonologists cleared him for discharge on April 3, which is coincidentally also his 83rd birthday.
“God, in His love and mercy, heard our prayer. He spared daddy from death,” Ella writes. “Yesterday, daddy’s pulmonologists and IM-infectious specialist said daddy may go home. We just need to repeat some tests.”
ADVERTISEMENT - CONTINUE READING BELOWAs of this writing, the Department of Health has announced that 64 patients have recovered from COVID-19. It’s a reassurance that we are fighting and we will be able to contain the virus — we just have to do our by staying at home to help the frontliners curb the spread of the virus.
Smart Parenting reached out to Ella Gaspar but have not received a reply.
Even patients with chronic illnesses can recover from COVID-19. Click here for a patient's successful recovery despite having asthma, diabetes, and hypertension. For more stories on COVID-19, click here.
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