INQUIRER.net Stock Photo
A doctor watched over a 6-month-old boy for a month after his parents tested positive for the coronavirus in India.
Elvin’s father, a nurse, contracted COVID-19 last month, as per The Indian Express today, July 16. Following the father’s test results, Elvin and his mother returned to their home in Kerala.
The mom then went into home quarantine, but later tested positive for the virus that causes COVID-19. With both his parents having contracted the disease, a local child welfare committee sought people to care for Elvin to avoid his getting infected as well.
However, no one, including relatives of his parents, was willing to take him for fear of infection. The group eventually reached Dr. Mary Anitha on June 14, who quickly agreed to watch over Elvin.
“By the time the issue reached me, the baby had lived with his mother for several days after she tested positive and his chances of getting infected were very high,” she recalled.
“I discussed the issue with my family only after expressing my willingness to take care of the baby,” the doctor said in the report.
Anitha, who is a mother of three, then went to a hospital before bringing Elvin to an empty unit in her apartment building, where she stayed with him. Since June 15, Anitha’s kids have been leaving meals in front of the room’s door for her and Elvin.
Anitha also kept contact with Elvin’s parents through video calls. The father was undergoing treatment in Gurgaon, while the mother stayed in a hospital in Kochi.
“The doctor was a godsend. Nobody would come forward to take care of a baby of a Covid-19 patient,” Elvin’s mother was quoted as saying. “I respect her as well as her family who supported her decision.’’
The doctor finally reunited Elvin with his parents yesterday, July 15, after they were discharged from the hospitals. Ryan Arcadio
RELATED STORIES:
6-month-old baby with heart and lung problems beats COVID-19
10-year-old boy fighting cancer survives COVID-19