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An Essex cleaner, who was the first known coronavirus patient in the UK, recounted how she continues to suffer the effects of the disease eight months later.
Joanne Rogers, 51, of Colchester, Essex, became ill with flu-like symptoms in late January and spent two weeks in bed at home with the mysterious illness before being rushed to the hospital.
At the time, on February 15, covid-19 was still considered a distant virus, posing minimal risk to the UK public, with just nine people, Chinese students and those who had visited a French ski resort, to whom Public Health England.
Ms Rogers recalls how she felt like a ‘fraud’ about being taken to the hospital in an ambulance for the ‘flu’ after her concerned partner Richard Shepherd called NHS 111.
Joanne Rogers, 51, (left) of Colchester, Essex, and daughter Lauren, 20
She told The Mirror: ‘One of the last things I remember was going to resume and joking with the doctor, saying,’ I’m not going to die, am I? ‘He said,’ Not on my shift. ” ‘
But just 24 hours later, the mother was diagnosed with a severe and unexplained outbreak of pneumonia, forcing doctors to put Ms. Rogers on a respirator and induce her into a coma to improve her chances of survival.
Doctors also performed a tracheostomy, which involves cutting a temporary or permanent hole in the neck to place a tube in the windpipe.
As it is now known to be a common immune response in COVID-19 patients, Ms Roger’s body began to release an excessive amount of molecules that cause inflammation, which is known as a “cytokine storm.”
During her 17-day stay in intensive care, Ms Rogers was not tested for coronavirus, leaving no indication to doctors that they were dealing with a covid patient.
Ms. Rogers (left) was not tested for COVID-19 during her 17-day stay in intensive care. In the photo with her daughter Lauren
Roger’s daughter Lauren told the Mirror how her mother’s partner Richard had sat her up and given her the news that doctors had given her mother a 50/50 percent chance of survival.
Later, Ms Rogers tested positive for antibodies, which is why Professor Francois Balloux from University College London suggested that she was probably one of the first COVID-19 patients in the UK.
He told the publication: ‘Back then, no one could have predicted what a catastrophe it would be. I am absolutely convinced that there will be quite a few undiagnosed cases.
He added that since the UK has had as many as 1,400 separate covid-19 introductions, Patient Zero could not be identified as in other countries.
Ms. Rogers is now dealing with the long-term effects of COVID-19, including severe anxiety, fatigue, and muscle pain.
Despite this, she has had no choice but to return to work, 2 hours a day, as long as covid does not qualify her for Personal Independence Payments as it is not classified as a disability.
She also has to deal with the psychological effects of the nightmares she suffered during the 12-day coma that continue to haunt her.
A coronavirus tracking app designed by King’s College London, which asks users to report their symptoms, found that hundreds of its more than two million users had suffered from Covid-like symptoms shortly after the new year.
Some even said they had suffered symptoms matching those of the virus in late December.
Although it has not been proven, reports suggest that the virus was circulating in the UK long before it was identified.
Britain recorded a further 151 deaths from Covid-19 on Sunday, more than double last Sunday’s total.
Some 19,790 people tested positive for coronavirus in the UK, representing an increase of just 16.5 percent from the 16,982 cases reported last Sunday.
However, today’s daily death toll has soared 125 percent compared to the 67 deaths reported on Sunday last week.
The 151 deaths from Covid-19 in all settings, including hospitals, nursing homes, and the community at large, reported today are the highest number of Sunday deaths since May 24.
