Northampton grandad beats Covid-19 after nearly two weeks on a ventilator

After a month in hospital and almost two weeks on a ventilator, a Northampton grandad has beaten the deadly virus and has been allowed home.

Stephen Lee was admitted to Northampton General Hospital on May 13 due to an unrelated bike injury that saw him fracture ten ribs.

After four days in hospital Stephen contracted the virus and his condition started to decline.

Within a few days of testing positive, the 51-year-old who has no underlying health conditions, was in intensive care.

Gemma Lee, Stephen’s daughter, said: “It all happened so quickly. His oxygen levels were dropping so quickly and he ended up spending almost two weeks on a ventilator.

“In the sense of not being able to see him, it was heartbreaking.

“You know one of your family members is in there, but you don’t know the outcome.

“It was an emotional time for everyone.”

Eventually Stephen started to breathe on his own and began to recover.

Four weeks after first being admitted he was finally allowed back to his Kingsthorpe home after testing negative and being given the all clear.

Gemma is now speaking out about how devastating the virus can be and how NHS staff saved her dad’s life.

She added: “The hospital looked after him extremely well.

“They gave us regular updates on how he was doing and the day he woke up they video called me.

“That was emotional and so special.

“They basically saved his life and that’s what he has said too. If it wasn’t for them, who knows where we’d be.”

Since returning home, Stephen has experienced dizziness and hallucinations, which he has been told are results of being on a ventilator and could last up to a year.

Despite a bit of confusion around what is real or not, Gemma says her dad is extremely thankful.

“He is just so grateful. It really hit him that he could have lost his life if it wasn’t for the quick action of the hospital staff,” Gemma continued.

“With him, we don’t know the way it could have gone, so we’re all just so grateful at the moment.

“Some people have the virus mildly so people do not realise just how bad it can get.

“It’s very scary to go through it when someone so close to you has it, but we had to keep our hopes up for him.”

Since returning from hospital, Stephen’s family has all been chipping in to make sure he has everything he needs, while he continues to combat the effects of the virus.

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