The beginning impact of Covid-19 pandemic

The first half of 2020 has been unbelievable. Something I have not seen or lived through in my lifetime (almost 50 years). I have lived through the SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) in early 2000s when I lived in Thunder Bay, Ontario. The Toronto area was hit the hardest during this epidemic, but working as an employee of a hospital, we had to do the daily screenings to ensure we weren’t bringing in infections. I didn’t have to wear a mask and full PPE protocols as I was not front line interacting with the public, but mom did who worked as a RN ER nurse had to wear the full PPE outfit (face shield, gown, gloves and mask). It was an uneasy feeling going through that then, it’s way worst feeling now knowing how highly contagious this Covid-19 virus is compared to the SARS/MERS epidemics. 

Now some 20 years later, our world, our global landscape will be changed forever with the spreading of the Coronavirus 19. It’s in the same family as the SARS/MERS (Mediterranean East Respiratory Syndrome) but the difference being it’s the most contagious, it’s airborne, it has human to human transfer plus the incubation period is up to 14 days before symptoms can show in another person. So unknowingly while you are asymptomatic, you are passing the virus to person who then unknowingly passes it onto someone else, so on and so forth. This what makes the virus deadly and can stop you dead in your tracks out of fear. The first death of Covid-19 was an elderly person in BC lower mainland and he lived in a long term care (LTC) facility and in the US (Seattle, Washington area) their first death was an elderly person in a LTC facility. This was the end of February, this was my wake-up call about this virus and the impact and risks to people who gets infected with this virus. Honestly, it’s scary for me. 

I could check off basically all the boxes which puts you at high risk:

- Have an autoimmune disease (Guillian Barre Syndrome 

- Have a respiratory compromised issues (asthma, diaphragm dysfunction - can’t fully cough on my own due to GBS and being a quadriplegic)

- I live in a LTC facility

It’s been almost 6 months since this pandemic started, from other countries who were infected with virus before arriving in Canada, we have learned why this virus is the worst we have seen in our life time - it’s just not a respiratory virus like originally thought, it is a systematic virus. Death from Covid-19 is not just pneumonia but from blood clots in your lungs, cardiovascular complications like heart attacks, blood vessel diseases like DVT, aneurysms, blood clotting diseases, affects the liver, kidneys and affects ALL ages not just seniors). This is why I made the decision to self-isolate myself to my room in a LTC facility. It was a little something I still had control of to protect my health. Since March 4, 2020, I have spent 80 days in my room taking all my meals in my room. April 24 to May 13, I was in the hospital recovering from acute appendicitis requiring an emergency appendectomy. As they had to intubated me for the general anesthetic, I had to spend a day this time in ICU in case any issues arise when I was extubated; which I did. I was diagnosed with bronchopneumonia in my lower sections of my lungs the following day. At the same time, with everything going on I was having issues with my INR levels (important for blood clotting). As majority of my stay was due to the fact my facility was on lockdown due to Covid-19 virus, we took advantage to try a new blood thinner so I wouldn’t need to get blood tests so often. My silver lining in this episode at the hospital. I returned to my facility, I was put in quarantine for 14 days even though I tested negative 3 times. The Covid protocols is if a resident spends 4 hours or more outside of the facility, they are quarantined for 14 days and probably tested again to ensure you did not become infected while outside the facility. Finally started eating my lunches in our dining area, seating is now two to a table sitting across the table from one another and all the tables are now further a part for safe distancing. 

I do realize this is to keep us safe and healthy for both residents and staff. Being I haven’t dined with the other residents for almost 3 months, I observed we obviously all need a good haircut (haha), but was seeing the deterioration of some of the residents. Ones who were able to feed themselves, now are total feeds like me. Some look like they have gone into themselves. If it was the music playing songs from Frank Sintra to Buddy Holly at meal times, it would be painful quiet. I do wonder how long the restrictions for LTC facilities until they can start loosening. I miss my face to face visiting with friends. It sure brightens my day. We will see where we are in the Fall.