The first patient to be admitted to Tauranga hospital with coronavirus returned home yesterday and has offered glowing praise over the treatment received whilst staying in the wards.
“I’m in awe of the care I got. The nurses, the doctors, everyone was just wonderful, simply superb, so lovely and funny as well. It helped brighten my days and certainly helped with my recovery. My heartfelt thanks go to them all, they’re all heroes in my mind. I mean how do you thank people for having a life? It could so easily have gone the other way,” said the un-named patient.
Along with expressing gratitude to the staff at Tauranga Hospital, the patient also advised others to take the Covid-19 threat seriously and abide by the lockdown rules, saying that the virus has the ability to take people by surprise.
“It is so serious and it just creeps up on you, it’s insidious. If my symptoms are anything to go by, it is very hard to identify and it takes quite a while to manifest itself. It took quite a few days before my temperature went up to 38C, for example.
“I recall feeling listless. I was drifting really, not consciously thinking about anything. And I gradually lost my appetite until I just wasn’t eating. My doctor said I should get tested and a couple of days later it came back positive.”
Although the patient is now back at home recovering, doctors have said that a return to full-strength may be awhile away, with the loss of taste and smell still present.
The patient said, “I’m beginning to get my strength back a bit now but the doctors say it will probably be another three weeks or so before I’ll be feeling anything like normal. My appetite and sense of taste have not returned yet. I might be able to taste the first mouthful of anything I eat but not after that. Then I’m really just eating because I know it’s fuel.”
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