Recovered patients – a lifeline for the sick

JORDAN MOSHE

The anxiety, fear, and loneliness can be as devastating as any of the medical symptoms experienced, so too can the stigma that isolates you from friends and your community.

Someone who has experienced what you are going through can coach you through this horror no matter how badly or lightly you are impacted.

Understanding this, Dr Daniel Israel, a general practitioner operating in Athol Oaklands, has piloted a unique COVID-19 mentorship programme that partners people with the virus with those who have already recovered from it, matching them based on certain commonalities.

“When people got the virus in the early stages of the pandemic, there was huge fear. This continues to persist, especially because of the media hype,” says Israel. “The fear of diagnosis is often greater than the symptoms, and anxiety is compounded by the immediate isolation of those who test positive. Patients feel very alone.

“After taking so many precautions to prevent themselves from getting ill, patients are thrust into sudden solitude and told to handle the condition alone. Those recovering at home have no physical contact with their families, no doctor able to see them in person, and almost no one they can relate to about the experience.”

After mentoring an initial group of patients himself in the early days of the pandemic, Israel invited these individuals to become part of a support system for subsequent patients.

“As we know from many other medical conditions, support from a person who has gone through the same thing speaks loudly. I wanted to link people with others like them to tell them that they weren’t alone, and give them hope that if someone else managed to get through the virus, they would as well.”

Israel has been partnering willing COVID-19-positive patients with recovered patients for almost two months, setting up an initial Zoom meeting, and subsequently putting the two in touch via WhatsApp. Both newly diagnosed and recovered patients have eagerly taken up the opportunity, and the support system has flourished.

“My COVID-19 diagnosis came as no real surprise, but I did get shock when the results came through,” says Choli Feinblum, one of the first patients on the programme, who was diagnosed in April. “Friends around the world had had it, and had mild symptoms, so I thought I’d get ill at some point, carry on, and get better.”

Feinblum consulted Israel, and because his initial symptoms were mild, he was treated for bronchitis before testing positive. However, when his initial extreme headaches and cough worsened, Feinblum began to experience tremendous anxiety.

“My symptoms aligned with the severe cases I read about in the news, which ultimately resulted in death,” he says. “I really thought my time was coming. I couldn’t string a sentence together without having to catch breath, and basic things like going to the bathroom required strenuous effort.

“It was horrific. I couldn’t breathe properly, I had extreme chest pains, and couldn’t sleep or eat. Hatzolah checked in with me daily to monitor my progress, and Dr Daniel checked in over the phone. It was an awful time.”

Israel observed the toll anxiety was having on Feinblum, and arranged for two recovered patients to engage with him via Zoom. They shared their experience, and showed Feinblum that recovery was possible.

“That was when things really turned around,” says Feinblum. “It was reassuring to know that they had had the same symptoms, and had survived the ordeal. My mind was at rest at last, and my wife and I were reassured.”

Feinblum recovered, and was offered the opportunity to become a mentor himself. He began engaging this week with Jason Joffa, another of Israel’s patients, who was diagnosed with the virus last week after feeling consistently exhausted.

“I knew something wasn’t right,” says Joffa. “Dr Daniel sent me for a test on Wednesday, and I got confirmation that I was positive on Sunday. The simplest tasks became a mission overnight, and the pains in my chest were like a vice squeezing me. Googling my symptoms drove me insane, and my energy levels were non-existent.”

Although he began the support programme only on Monday, Joffa says its effect was almost immediate.

“It was amazing to talk to someone who had gone through it,” he says. “I could ask questions, relieve my anxiety, and find out what to expect.

“I felt ostracised at first. I had been so careful to avoid contracting it, and I’m an anxious person by nature. I know I just have to ride it out, but the frustration of not knowing when it will end is awful. Having someone to talk to makes all the difference.”

Fellow patient Joshua Alter has had a similar experience. Thinking little of initial mild symptoms, he tested positive on Friday, 19 June, after his symptoms worsened.

“I’m a 34-year-old man, and given what patients my age typically experience, I should have got over it in four days,” he says. “That was 16 days ago. When I passed five days, things got worse, and I couldn’t understand why I wasn’t recovering. It was very difficult.”

Israel partnered Alter with a mentor who had also suffered a prolonged bout of the virus before recovering, giving him considerable hope for his own recovery.

“Only people who have gone through COVID-19 can understand and relate to you,” he says. “When you’re coughing your lungs out, your doctor and family can only do so much to help you through it. You feel alone, and that’s damaging.

“This virus is unlike anything I’ve ever had, but knowing that someone else had gone through it, survived, and was helping me, changed things. I realised I was normal. My mentor gave me hope that this would all end.”

As soon as he recovers, Alter intends to become a mentor for other patients. He, Feinblum, and Joffa agree that alongside medical intervention, breaking the stigma and self-imposed silence surrounding the virus is key to recovery.

“There can be no taboo attached to the subject,” Alter says. “Support and openness are two of the biggest tools in recovery. We need to speak candidly. A programme like this helps us overcome stigma and reach out to people who need the support most.”