Noida: Symptoms have been predominantly mild in the current wave of the pandemic but that’s now not how the infection has manifested in several doctors who have tested positive over the past few weeks. Some of the doctors TOI spoke to said they had been experiencing moderate to severe symptoms of Covid, probably due to the heavy virus load in the environment they operate in, and were taking longer to recover.
Dr Arjun Khanna, a senior pulmonologist and critical care specialist at the Yashoda Hospital, got infected the second time during the current surge of the pandemic. He got the infection in 2020, during the first wave. He recalled dealing with the debilitating after-effects of Covid the first time around. “Then, I was serving people getting infected. Since I was a frontline worker, I, too, was infected, and my symptoms were so severe that I had to get admitted for nearly 10 days. However, I continued to give consultations due to the high load of patients. More than the physical ailment, the mental suffering was a major hindrance. I suffered from temporary memory loss, prolonged body ache and irritability during the first wave.”
Talking about the latest infection, he added, “This time, it was tough to cope with the disease as the symptoms of the health care workers are much more severe and prolonged.”
Dr Ankit Kumar Sinha, a critical care specialist, has also got Covid twice now and had to be hospitalised in the current wave. “During the first wave, I was infected with the virus. But I managed to escape the second wave. I am now showing the same symptoms such as fever, cough and body ache. In case of doctors, due to the high virus load, symptoms have been severe. My recovery this time took 14 days and coping with the post-Covid effects has been a tiring journey,” he said.
Other doctors who have got infected twice now shared similar experiences. Dr AP Singh, a senior physician at a Ghaziabad hospital, was infected by the virus twice during the first wave.
“During that time, I had a very tight schedule treating 70 patients at a time while we were still figuring out more about the virus. Given my condition, I remained in the ICU for a long time, fighting the virus.
“Even after recovering, the after-effects of Covid affected both my physical and mental well-being. I used to undergo Covid tests every 15 days to make sure I am not re-infected and to keep my family and other colleagues safe.”
Dr Arjun Khanna, a senior pulmonologist and critical care specialist at the Yashoda Hospital, got infected the second time during the current surge of the pandemic. He got the infection in 2020, during the first wave. He recalled dealing with the debilitating after-effects of Covid the first time around. “Then, I was serving people getting infected. Since I was a frontline worker, I, too, was infected, and my symptoms were so severe that I had to get admitted for nearly 10 days. However, I continued to give consultations due to the high load of patients. More than the physical ailment, the mental suffering was a major hindrance. I suffered from temporary memory loss, prolonged body ache and irritability during the first wave.”
Talking about the latest infection, he added, “This time, it was tough to cope with the disease as the symptoms of the health care workers are much more severe and prolonged.”
Dr Ankit Kumar Sinha, a critical care specialist, has also got Covid twice now and had to be hospitalised in the current wave. “During the first wave, I was infected with the virus. But I managed to escape the second wave. I am now showing the same symptoms such as fever, cough and body ache. In case of doctors, due to the high virus load, symptoms have been severe. My recovery this time took 14 days and coping with the post-Covid effects has been a tiring journey,” he said.
Other doctors who have got infected twice now shared similar experiences. Dr AP Singh, a senior physician at a Ghaziabad hospital, was infected by the virus twice during the first wave.
“During that time, I had a very tight schedule treating 70 patients at a time while we were still figuring out more about the virus. Given my condition, I remained in the ICU for a long time, fighting the virus.
“Even after recovering, the after-effects of Covid affected both my physical and mental well-being. I used to undergo Covid tests every 15 days to make sure I am not re-infected and to keep my family and other colleagues safe.”
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