Lenox Hill Hospital released their 1,000th COVID-19 patient on Thursday afternoon.
According to officials from the hospital, 61-year-old Ramdeo Radhay had been admitted to the hospital ten days prior with the infection.
Radhay, an immigrant from Guyana, worked in an auto repair shop and was laid off due to the circumstances of the pandemic. Radhay, his wife and three of his children (all of whom work in health care) eall came down with COVID-19, with Radhay having the worst case.
During his time at Lenox Hospital, Radhay had been doing poorly. He required oxygen for most of the time he was hospitalized. Doctors had considered placing Radhay on a ventilator when they opted to start him on plasma instead.
Once the plasma treatment started, Radhay’s condition turned around almost instantly.
“Over the last 48 hours he has had a remarkable recovery,” said Dr. Nazish Ilyas, Division Chief of the Hospitalists and Associate Chair for Inpatient Medicine at Lenox Hill Hospital. “Today was the first day that we were able to take him off of oxygen completely. From where he came in two weeks ago to today, the progress he has made has really been remarkable.”
On April 30, Radhay was healthy enough to be discharged from Lenox Hill Hospital.
“One thing I saw in him was his resilience,” said Dr. Ilyas. “When you walk in and talk to him, all you really hear is the gratitude and the hope. He’s really grateful that he recovered. He’s very optimistic about the future and really grateful for everything despite what he’s been through.”
Dr. Ilyas said that while the plasma trials don’t have enough definitive results just yet, many at Lenox Hill Hospital are thinking of them as signs of hope for combatting COVID-19 now and in the future.
“A lot of work is going into the trials now to really try and find answers for the future that can benefit our patients.
