Mumbai student talks about how he fought COVID-19 at Kasturba hospital

Hrishi Giridhar said on Instagram that the doctors and nurses at Kasturba hospital were friendly, constantly communicating with the patients, even monitoring their health on a regular basis

Hrishi Giridhar during his COVID-19 treatment at Kasturba hospital in Mumbai. Picture/Instagram Humans of Bombay

Amid the rising number of coronavirus cases in Maharashtra and especially in Mumbai, a heartwarming story of a student who tested positive to his recovery, with the help of doctors and nurses of Kasturba Hospital in Mumbai has taken the internet by storm.

Hrishi Giridhar, who was tested positive for the novel coronavirus shared his experience on his Instagram account. Giridhar, a resident of Mumbai was studying at the London School of Economics in United Kingdom when the number of coronavirus cases across the globe saw an upsurge.

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Since this sort of blew up on FB, I thought of making it a post here. Thank you for all the wishes. Please support our healthcare professionals, stay safe and take care âÂÂÂÂu00c2u009d¤ï¸ÂÂÂÂu00c2u008fðÂÂÂÂu00c2u009fÂÂÂÂu00c2u0099ÂÂÂÂu00c2u008f

A post shared by Hrishi Giridhar (@hrishigiridhar) onApr 3, 2020 at 4:16am PDT

Hrishi said that the aim of writing the post was to share the experience of the amazing care he received from the staff at Kasturba hospital and to spread awareness about the symptoms of coronavirus.

Hrishi said that when he arrived in Mumbai from London he had no symptoms of COVID-19 but as a protocol kept himself in isolation. On Day threer he developed fatigue and had mild fever which increased the next day. Although he had no symptoms of coronavirus, Hrishi had fever and fatigue and on day five he fainted all of a sudden due to severe dizziness.

Hrishi said that post this, he visited Kasturba hospital and his test results came out positive for the novel coronavirus. Talking about the COVID-19 test Hrishi said, "The test is simple throat swab, and it took approximately 24 hours to get the results."

 

 

 

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Thank you for having me on Humans of Bombay, @iyoushe . My love and gratitude to the healthcare community. Take care and stay safe everyone :) Thank you @niks.41 for taking this picture of me

A post shared by Hrishi Giridhar (@hrishigiridhar) onApr 7, 2020 at 7:46am PDT

Talking about his experience at Kasturba, Hrishi said that the doctors and nurses at Kasturba were friendly and they took good care of him. The nurses were constantly communicating with the patients and were even monitoring their health on a regular basis, he added.

After 24 hours when Hrishi tested positive for COVID-19, he was shifted to another ward where he underwent several tests such as blood pressure, blood test, X-ray etc.

Giving insights into COVID-19 treatment Hrishi in his own words said, "I must say I feel like I am in very good hands. The rooms and wards are clean and there are multiple santiser bottles kept in every single room. Everyday, there is someone who cleans the floor and changes the bed sheets. The doctors and the nurses seem to know every patient and all their symptoms."

From being tested positive to recovering from the global pandemic, Hrishi said that he had immense gratitude for everyone at Kasturba hospital who took care of him. He also narrated how a doctor took rounds of every room and spoke to all the patients asking them about their health and urging them to stay positive amid the coronavirus crisis.

 

 

 

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“I was in my college dorm in the UK when Covid-19 took an upsurge. It was scary because LSE had students from 45 countries, all returning to campus after winter break. It wasn’t long before someone on campus tested positive & panic spread. Students rushed back home. Until the very last minute, I was afraid to travel back. But when things worsened, I decided to go back to my family. As per protocol, I self-isolated for 2 weeks. My parents arranged for me to stay in our guest house and stocked it with essentials. On day 2, I started feeling fatigued, experienced body pains & a fever. I thought it was because I was tired and stressed. But on day 5, I fainted. When I regained consciousness, I told my parents. My family doctor suggested that I get tested. So I went to Kasturba & the next day my tests were positive. It was 2 AM, & I felt my stomach sinking. I tried to stay calm. I told my parents, who also reacted calmly. From there on, it was just a matter of listening to doctors & not losing hope. The next morning, I woke up to the news that an 18 year old boy died due to the virus. That’s when I decided to delete all my news apps. Just then, a nurse with a smile on her face got me breakfast, after which I was given my medicines. The most uplifting part was talking to the staff -- a nurse saw my Instagram profile & jokingly said I should play my guitar for all the patients! Believe it or not, the whole vibe of the hospital has been so cheerful and that’s really what kept all of us in the ward going. By day 5, all my symptoms had gone. 3 days back, I tested negative. I’ll be tested again before I’m discharged. I couldn’t have done this without friends & family, but most importantly, without the staff, who gave me everything, from medicines, to food, to comfort, to company, to hope—simply everything. Once I’m discharged, life would technically go back to normal, I’ll study for my exams, work on my music, play my guitar… but with a completely new perspective. A life lesson, that the unexpected can happen, & probably will at some point in everyone’s life… but the only way out is through love, kindness and hope. We’re all going to get through this.” #WorldHealthDay

A post shared by Humans of Bombay (@officialhumansofbombay) onApr 7, 2020 at 2:25am PDT

Lauding the government's efforts to combat the spread of coronavirus, Hrishi urged people to follow the state's orders and maintain social distance. He also requested people to not put extra pressure on the healthcare system.

At the time of writing the post, Hrishi had spent over 11 days at the hospital and he said that the time passed quickly and he saw many patients recovering from the novel coronavirus. Hrishi concluded his post by saying that he tested negative a few days ago and all his family members and others who were in contact with him also tested negative for coronavirus.

Covid-19 patient Hrishi Giridhar shares a first person account of his health post contracting Coronavirus & welfare provided by Mumbai's Kasturba Hospital.
It is imperative to bust myths & stay away from rumors.

Godspeed Hrishiðu00c2u009fu00c2u0099u00c2u008fðu00c2u009fu00c2u008f»
My prayers & pride with the health care community pic.twitter.com/d3WkgubWjH

— Hrithik Roshan (@iHrithik) April 3, 2020

In an interview with Humans of Bombay, Hrishi Giridhar spoke about his journey from being tested positive for COVID-19 to recovering from the deadly virus. Hrishi's inspiring story was also shared by Bollywood superstar Hrithik Roshan who lauded the health care community and said that it was important to bust myths surrounding coronavirus as he urged people to stay away from rumors.

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