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11-month-old, Chandigarh’s youngest patient, checkmates Covid

Hindustan Times, Chandigarh | ByAmanjeet Singh Salyal, Chandigarh
Apr 26, 2020 09:22 PM IST

Director PGIMER Dr Jagat Ram said that it was a triumph as treating the baby was a mighty task for the medical team due to her tender age

Chandigarh’s youngest Covid-19 patient, an 11-month-old baby girl, has recovered. The infant and her mother were discharged from Chandigarh’s Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research on Sunday after winning a hard battle against the virus, providing a beacon of hope for recovery to others battling the epidemic.

With their discharge, the number of patients declared cured and discharged from PGIMER rose to nine.

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Holding her daughter in her arms, the Sector 33 resident said, “No words are enough to convey my thanks to the entire PGIMER team. There were phases of hopelessness and I thought I had lost the battle. But constant medical and psychological support had me sailing through.”

Director PGIMER professor Jagat Ram complimented the mother-daughter duo on their successful recovery. It was a touching scene at the hospital as the duo were given a warm send off with showering of flower petals and gifts.

Speaking on the occasion, Professor Jagat Ram said, “There is always a silver lining in dark clouds. In these challenging times, the moment, when any patient is discharged after being declared Covid-19-free, is a moment of triumph and jubilation not only for the patient and his family but for the entire medical team. Today, it is all the more special because treating the virus infected baby was a mighty task for the medical team due to her tender age.”

The four recovered patients discharged today were all members of one family who tested positive and were admitted in PGI on April 3. The baby girl’s father was discharged a week earlier, the mother-daughter were discharged on Sunday, while the baby’s grandmother is still in isolation, but is stable.

Professor Vipin Koushal, additional medical superintendent of the dedicated Covid-19 hospital, said, “It was the perfect birthday gift for me today. It is a joy to see the young angel cured. One cannot imagine how gruelling it must have been for the little one who could not even express her pain and anguish. Although we discuss all patients and their prognosis, but the team was emotionally attached to this little girl.”

Elaborating the importance of psychological intervention along with pharmacological treatment to help a patient fight the virus, Dr Swapanjit Sahu from the psychiatry department said, “Though both mother and daughter were physically stable, it was very stressful experience psychologically to stay isolated from everyone. The mother reported significant distress during her stay and was consistently counselled via video. It was tressful for her as despite her testing negative, her baby tested positive again and again. This can be disappointing for anyone but regular counselling helped her through.”

Although discharged from PGI, the mother and daughter will be home quarantined for 14 days as per the standard protocol to be followed by all Covid-19 patients.

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