Filipino family turn the corner after weeks of battling virus
Odiaman was on ventilator for two weeks and received 20 electrical shocks
Filipino expatriate Gil Odiaman, 61, is overcome by a deep sense of gratitude. He was in hospital for over 30 days, 14 of which were spent on the mechanical ventilator in the Intensive Care Unit.
He was given electrical shocks by a defibrillator 20 times in a span of three consecutive days.
He suffered from arrhythmias and his blood pressure dropped. But it was his strong will power and the proper management of his condition that saw him through.
Among the last batch of Covid-19 patients to be discharged from Prime Hospital on June 27, Odiaman is not thankful for his recovery alone. The entire family of the customer service officer in Sharjah had tested positive.
Worked during lockdown
He never took a single day off during the movement restrictions and continued to work and meet his clients. His wife Rowena, 56, who worked as a personal assistant and his daughter Dominique, 25, who worked in the hospitality industry were off from work.
But as Rowena told Gulf News: ‘We have no idea how we got the virus, I was working from home most of the time , my daughter who was working in the hotel industry, first went to work, but underwent two Covid-19 tests, both of which were negative. Eventually, she took long leave from work.”
A nephew and a niece also live with them.
“It was my niece who works in the construction industry who first tested positive in May. Soon after, my husband and nephew did. My husband’s condition seemed bad and we brought him to Prime Hospital. He had to be put on the ventilator as his lungs were impacted.”
Rowena said she and her daughter also tested positive in June “While I had moderate symptoms with bronchitis, my daughter was asymptomatic. I was admitted to the Covid ward while Dominique took up a room at the hotel isolation facility adjacent to Prime Hospital.
Challenging case
Odiaman’s case, which was challenging, was treated with an aggressive protocol.
Dr Adel Mohammad Yasin Al Sisi, Chief Medical Officer and in charge ICU at Prime Hospital, said: “We were extremely worried about the patient’s condition as his heart, kidney, lungs and liver were all compromised. His heart had discordant electrical activity, his blood pressure was falling and we had to give him 20 shocks over three consecutive days to stabilise him. The complete Covid protocol was followed to stop the Cytokine storm.”