COVID-19:‘Turkish health professionals pay heavy price'

By Hasan Huseyin Kulaoglu

ISTANBUL (AA) - A Turkish cardiologist who recently recovered from COVID-19 said his optimism and belief played essential role in his personal victory against the disease.

A father of two, Ali Soner Demir, contracted the virus from one of his patients in March 2020.

Demir told Anadolu Agency the disease started with a complaint of mild cough, so he initially thought it was just a seasonal cold that would pass through rest.

However, constant coughing and high fever led him to take a blood test and lung tomography, with results showing that he was now a COVID-19 patient and needed treatment in a hospital.

“When I was hospitalized, the trouble in breathing was particularly acute. I often felt like I was choking,” he noted.

He said his wife, also a doctor, and his two daughters were also infected with the novel coronavirus, stressing the heavy price health professionals have paid in fighting the pandemic.

“Unfortunately, many healthcare professionals lost their loved ones in this process. They, unknowingly and unwillingly, transmitted the virus to their families. Many family members lost their lives simply for this reason. So, my wife and I stayed in the hospital while our daughters stayed at home during our treatment so that we would not transmit the virus to more people”, he said.

Demir said he believes in destiny, and death is an unavoidable reality but his strong belief and optimism played essential role in his recovery.

He also emphasized the significance of getting vaccinated, as well as paying attention to measures of facial masks, social distancing, and hygiene.

* Writing by Ahmet Gencturk in Ankara