'I Had Covid, And Survived. But There Were Times I Was Scared' I The Wire I Karan Thapar
- 3 years ago
#Coronavirus #Lockdown #Quarantine
In an interview to Karan Thapar for The Wire about his 19 days in hospital, a Covid-19 survivor who spent four days in Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital and 15 more in Safdarjung Hospital, has described his fear and apprehension, the psychological trauma as well as the conditions, food and treatment in the two hospitals.
Prof Ajit Mishra, director of the Institute of Economic Growth and Professor of Economics at the University of Bath, says till the Covid symptoms started to abate he lived with fear and apprehension. “Every night I was scared something terrible could happen and in the beginning it was hard to sleep.”
Mishra, a previous cardiac patient, reveals how he first suspected he had Covid the night he returned to Delhi from the UK on 15th March. He talks of how he was taken for testing in an ambulance and the crowded conditions at the RML testing centre. He speaks of the room he was isolated in along with up to five more people. He says the shower did not work and for 4 days he could not shower.
On the 19th, after his positive result was received, he was moved to Safdarjung wher he had a room to himself with an attached bathroom. He describes the conditions at Safdarjung as “excellent’ and says he began to like the food. He has praise for the doctors and nursing staff. The room was large enough for him to exercise in.
Prof Mishra said he kept a diary and spent several hours each day writing in it. Fear and apprehension were always present whilst the symptoms lasted but after they abated on the 27th/28th it was easier. However it took nearly 10 more days to receive two consecutive negative test results so he could be released. He’s now in home quarantine till the 15th of April.
Prof Mishra spoke of his wife and 16 year old son, who are in Bath, and his elderly parents, who live with him in Delhi. His parents had to be quarantined because they had spent a few hours with him when he arrived in Delhi on the 15th. His wife got Covid in Bath and self-quarantined. She recovered fairly quickly.
Prof Mishra says the experience has made him a more positive-thinking person. He also made a point of saying the media has overdone stories of how serious and life-threatening Covid-19 can be and thus drilled fear into people. As a survivor he wants to re-assure people that getting Covid is not a death sentence.
In an interview to Karan Thapar for The Wire about his 19 days in hospital, a Covid-19 survivor who spent four days in Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital and 15 more in Safdarjung Hospital, has described his fear and apprehension, the psychological trauma as well as the conditions, food and treatment in the two hospitals.
Prof Ajit Mishra, director of the Institute of Economic Growth and Professor of Economics at the University of Bath, says till the Covid symptoms started to abate he lived with fear and apprehension. “Every night I was scared something terrible could happen and in the beginning it was hard to sleep.”
Mishra, a previous cardiac patient, reveals how he first suspected he had Covid the night he returned to Delhi from the UK on 15th March. He talks of how he was taken for testing in an ambulance and the crowded conditions at the RML testing centre. He speaks of the room he was isolated in along with up to five more people. He says the shower did not work and for 4 days he could not shower.
On the 19th, after his positive result was received, he was moved to Safdarjung wher he had a room to himself with an attached bathroom. He describes the conditions at Safdarjung as “excellent’ and says he began to like the food. He has praise for the doctors and nursing staff. The room was large enough for him to exercise in.
Prof Mishra said he kept a diary and spent several hours each day writing in it. Fear and apprehension were always present whilst the symptoms lasted but after they abated on the 27th/28th it was easier. However it took nearly 10 more days to receive two consecutive negative test results so he could be released. He’s now in home quarantine till the 15th of April.
Prof Mishra spoke of his wife and 16 year old son, who are in Bath, and his elderly parents, who live with him in Delhi. His parents had to be quarantined because they had spent a few hours with him when he arrived in Delhi on the 15th. His wife got Covid in Bath and self-quarantined. She recovered fairly quickly.
Prof Mishra says the experience has made him a more positive-thinking person. He also made a point of saying the media has overdone stories of how serious and life-threatening Covid-19 can be and thus drilled fear into people. As a survivor he wants to re-assure people that getting Covid is not a death sentence.