A Heartfelt Reunion: Young COVID-19 survivor thanks Redmond care team
Walking back through the hospital doors, over eight months after leaving that same facility hanging on to life by a thread, a young COVID-19 survivor expressed his thanks.
On Dec. 7, 29-year-old Alex Flores came to the emergency room after testing positive for COVID-19 and experiencing trouble breathing. He was admitted to the hospital and immediately placed in ICU East at Redmond Regional Medical Center, where he spent the next 18 days in COVID-19 isolation.
As his breathing worsened, he was placed on a ventilator with heavy sedation. At that time, he was the youngest COVID-19 positive patient in the hospital.
“When Alex first came to the hospital, we were all very hopeful because he was so young. We wanted to make a difference, but after his first week at the hospital, he was only getting worse,” Alex’s nurse, Daniel Burton, said. “After two weeks, his chest X-rays were poor and his health continued to slowly decline. His heartrate kept dropping and he just kept deteriorating. I remember thinking, ‘We’re going to lose this kid.’”
During his time in isolation, Alex’s parents would drive to the hospital parking lot every day to video chat with Alex’s nursing team.
“It all happened so fast,” said Alex’s mother, Rozio Flores, “It’s so hard — when you can’t see your baby.”
On Christmas Eve, Alex’s parents were able visit him in the hospital for the first time.
“Alex’s nurse, Daniel, was incredible,” said Alex’s mother, “He came to the hospital on both Christmas Eve and Christmas Day to check on Alex. He made our 2020 Christmas better.”
As his health continued to deteriorate, plans of placing Alex on an ECMO machine, a respiratory machine that allows the heart and lungs to rest, began to arise.
“This was an end of the road decision,” Burton said. “There is a very narrow spectrum of qualifications for ECMO, and at one point, Alex did not qualify.”
On Dec. 30, after 24 days at Redmond, he was finally placed on an ECMO machine and transferred to Centennial Medical Center in Nashville, Tenn., the very next day.
Nearly eight months after his hospital admission, Alex walked into Redmond with his parents by his side — this time as a special visitor.
In a heartfelt reunion, Alex was able to meet several of the nurses and physicians that cared for him for the very first time.
Though he is still gaining his strength, Alex’s health has improved tremendously.
“I’m feeling a lot better than I did before,” said Alex.
“He no longer has to walk with a cane, but COVID weakened his lungs significantly. Even now, his lung capacity is only back up to 70%,” Alex’s mother said.
“It’s been a long recovery,” said Alex’s father, “It’s just going to take time to heal, but Redmond gave me my son back. Everyone in this hospital knew about my son. I’ve had a lot of people tell me that COVID isn’t a big deal, but they’ve never had a loved one go through what my son has gone through.”
The visit was a reminder for those working long hours at the hospital of why they do what they do.
“It’s pretty amazing to see someone who was on pressers, sedated on a vent” Jake Nix, a nurse who also cared for Alex during his time in ICU, said. “Someone who you had a feeling in your gut that was not going to make it…walk into the hospital and shake your hand.”