Drs were shocked my dad survived Covid – we used spreadsheets to keep him alive

‘Irrespective of how a lot he deteriorates, we gained’t put him on a ventilator,’ the physician stated.

Dad had been admitted to hospital on 26 March 2020, struggling to breathe.

I knew it was in all probability Covid and was insanely frightened. My dad was 81 with a persistent lung situation (COPD), that means a ventilator wouldn’t assist. 

‘It could be for the most effective if we simply discharged him’, they recommended.

Dad was begging to return residence, and as I’d examine so many aged Covid sufferers dying alone, my intuition kicked in. 

We agreed within the perception he solely had a couple of days left to dwell. 

As a result of we love him a lot, we needed him to endure as little as doable, surrounded by loving care from his household in his ultimate days. As I’d simply moved to my mother and father’ home after the top of my marriage, I used to be there to take care of Dad.

Coincidentally, I’d spent summer season 2019 making a database of pandemics over historical past for work, which took me again to my first job after graduating with a level in maths and statistics, the place I needed to analyse how many individuals globally would die from HIV. 

I knew information evaluation might result in some fairly wonderful discoveries, however I didn’t think about monitoring the pandemic from the start would assist save my father’s life.

After I first heard of a brand new virus spreading quickly in China, I’d carefully monitored the information – how briskly instances have been rising, who was impacted, which signs have been commonest, what remedies have been serving to. 

It was changing into clear that plenty of aged sufferers have been dying from Covid-19, however there have been a quantity that have been surviving. It was a glimmer of hope and as an alternative of bringing him residence to say goodbye, we refused to surrender on him.

I moved my aged mum to the bottom ground, turned their bed room right into a makeshift ICU, and as I’d been watching the saga unfold in China and Italy, stocked up on PPE in order that I might put on masks and gloves always.

Having had a coronary heart assault the earlier October, I did my finest to guard myself, however finally put my very own well being issues to 1 aspect to assist Dad. 

I purchased a thermometer, blood strain monitor and pulse oximeter to measure Dad’s very important stats, which I put right into a Google spreadsheet. The household GP might test this in actual time whereas I up to date it a number of occasions a day.

I additionally turned an previous iPad right into a dwell on-line monitor with a £3 app, which allowed my brother and his household, in addition to my children, to talk to and watch over Dad after I slept.

My in depth studying about how sufferers have been being handled across the globe led me to the choice to make use of my dad’s sleep apnoea CPAP machine – which delivers pressurised, oxygenated air into sufferers’ airwaves via a masks and tube – on him when he was struggling to breathe.

His physician was in settlement that it was price a shot, in addition to supporting our determination to put him within the susceptible place for prolonged durations to assist his lungs, that have been fluid-filled, soak up extra oxygen.

Within the 48 hours after he got here again residence, Dad refused all meals and fluid. We have been terrified, particularly when the GP confirmed his Covid take a look at was optimistic on day three.

The very last thing Dad needed was to return to the hospital, so my brother and I used the specter of this to coax him into ingesting some water.

We have been dwelling hour-by-hour. Per week on, issues bought worse – watching Dad deteriorate and wrestle for air was intensely distressing. 

Fortunately the GP instantly put Dad on antibiotics for what was a secondary lung an infection after I described signs and he’d regarded on the spreadsheet.

Issues as soon as once more began getting higher however I nonetheless felt scared. Each morning, I woke with a way of dread and needed to mentally brace myself after I walked into his bed room, not figuring out whether or not he was nonetheless with us or had gone within the night time. My coronary heart nearly stopped on quite a few events as Dad has a behavior of sleeping together with his mouth open, however then he’d get up, to my profound aid.

Whereas we hadn’t advised Dad he had Covid, as we didn’t need to fear him much more, he knew he was sick and requested me usually if he was going to die.

It was onerous staying optimistic however I reassured him at any time when he requested that he can be fantastic.

I feel the positivity helped him struggle it. 

Round day 14, his very important measurements started bettering. His respiration grew to become higher, his blood oxygen ranges elevated and the GP advised me that he now had an excellent probability of recovering. Mum helped to get him consuming and ingesting willingly once more together with his favorite Indian curries and correct builders’ tea.  

Three weeks in, we bought a name from the hospital he’d been discharged from. To say they have been extremely shocked that Dad was nonetheless alive was an understatement. They advised us we have been very lucky that he was recovering effectively, not least as a result of the information on the time was bleak.

When Dad got here residence on 27 March, there have been nearly 300 Covid deaths a day within the UK. By early April, it was topping 1,000. My coronary heart goes out to anybody who has misplaced family members to this virus.

I do know we’re fortunate to nonetheless have Dad.

However it wasn’t simply luck – it was additionally right down to information. I doggedly collected Dad’s readings and shared them together with his medical doctors, who cherished having a easy, efficient technique of monitoring his well being stats at any time. 

Coupled with my previous work on pandemics and continued analysis into coronavirus, plus unbelievable teamwork from my household and the medical professionals, it enabled us to provide Dad an opportunity to maintain respiration till finally, his immune system might kick in.

We didn’t deliver Dad residence to avoid wasting him. However fortunately he lived and I’ll be without end grateful to information, household and the NHS for serving to deliver him again from the brink – and to have the ability to drink his favorite cups of sturdy tea once more.

Do you have got a narrative you’d prefer to share? Get in contact by emailing jess.austin@metro.co.uk. 

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