“The biggest worry was the health of family and friends,” said Anant Sharma, one of the three doctors of Aligarh Muslim University’s Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College who tested positive for COVID 19, after he was discharged on Wednesday. His second consecutive report came out negative on Tuesday.
“I was confident that I will come out of it but was worried about my parents and friends,” said the postgraduate student of anaesthesiology. “The biggest learning is that one should take safety measures for the family and friends.”
Narrating his fight with COVID-19, Dr. Sharma said he developed high fever and sore throat on April 23. “I went to the fever clinic... two days later, I was declared COVID-19 positive and admitted to the isolation ward where two of my colleagues were already admitted.”
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Once admitted, his ECG and X-ray were taken which turned out normal. “ECG is important to determine whether the patient could be given hydroxychloroquine (HCQ). I was given HCQ along with a broad spectrum antibiotic so that I would not develop any infection. By the time I was admitted, my fever had become moderate and after 2 to 3 days I didn’t require any medicine for fever as I had become asymptomatic.”
Dr. Sharma refused to comment on the efficacy of HCQ. “I would insist that it should not be taken without a doctor’s advice.”
The moment he tested positive, his wife, also a doctor, was sent into home quarantine and her samples along with that of his parents were tested. “Thankfully, they all tested negative.”
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He could not determine his source of infection. He said he had worked with the other two doctors before they tested positive. “As none of us was posted in the fever clinic, we were not given PPE. However, now every patient who comes to the hospital is tested for COVID-19 and all the doctors have been given PPE.”
‘Communal virus’
When he was in the hospital, a local MLA held JNMC responsible for the spread of the virus. The district administration complained of delays in reports. “Like COVID-19, the communal virus also demands social distancing,” said Dr. Sharma. “The more you ignore it, the less it will spread.”
Dr. Sharma has rented a flat in a society in Zakaria Market, near the medical college. “It is a predominantly Muslim locality and the support we got from our neighbours will remain etched in our memory. So does the support of my friends and senior members of Resident Doctors’ Association. Their messages, calls, and, not to forget, food gave me confidence that I am not alone in this fight.”
Dr. Sharma has been advised two weeks of home quarantine. “I am eager to return to the front line. With the number of cases increasing in the city, that’s where I should be,” he said.