Cape Town – Accounting for the largest portion of the country’s Covid-19 cases, the Western Cape has also recorded nearly 10 000 recoveries, showing there is light at the end of the tunnel for some who contract the disease.
Desere Goliath, from Kraaifontein, who was put in a medically induced coma, said the road to recovery has not been easy.
“My husband got it and I was taking care of him for a week before he was hospitalised. Then I contracted the virus and was also in the hospital. I was put in a medically induced coma for a week.
"The doctor told me to call my husband and tell him I loved him, almost like I was saying goodbye. When I came out of the coma I found out that I had to call him because the doctor said there was a 10% chance I would not make it out of the coma. I was so grateful to be alive,” she said.
She said she had to learn how to write and walk again. “I asked the nurse to give me a pen to write what I wanted to say, as I had tubes in my mouth. I thought I could, but when I wanted to write, I was just scribbling.
“I couldn’t eat and was fed through tubes, it was not easy. I would not
want anyone to go through what I
went through.”
Ndumiso Mavimbela, 54, from Delft, was discharged from the Covid-19 ICU ward at Tygerberg Hospital recently.
Mavimbela was the first patient at the hospital with severe pneumonia, secondary to Covid-19, to be
successfully extubated from invasive ventilation.
Alison Pieterse, chief
physiotherapist at the hospital
said: “The contribution of every
member of the Tygerberg Hospital
staff who served Mr Mavimbela,
together with his fighting spirit and
commitment to recovery, led up to
this amazing outcome.”
Mavimbela said he was not ready
to speak to the media yesterday.
Chief porter at Tygerberg
Hospital Anthony McKenzie,
who also recently recovered from
the virus, said he did not expect to
test positive.
“I had a loss of taste and smell,
my body was sore and I had a lot of
weakness. I was shocked when my
test results came back positive. I did
not expect it, I thought it was the
normal flu.”
He said those who test positive
must follow the guidelines and look
at the bright side of things.
Nursing assistant Charm
MacDonald said for seven days she
experienced headaches, coughing, a
sore throat, muscle aches, fever, and
a loss of taste and smell.
“I was scared when I tested
positive, but I accepted and isolated
and drank Panado, Med Lemon,
Rooibos tea, and lots of water. I also
made sure I ate regularly.
“People must pray and have faith,
they must keep themselves safe, keep
social distancing and sanitise and
wash hands regularly,” she said.