COMMENT | My experience living with Covid-19 patient for a week

COMMENT | On Dec 28, Health Ministry director-general Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah said there was a logistics delay in transferring Covid-19 patients from their homes to the quarantine centre, especially in the Klang Valley.

He had suggested some patients who are asymptomatic to self-quarantine at home until medical officers fetch them to the hospital.

Last week, I experienced the exact situation when one of my housemates contracted the coronavirus but she was not immediately taken to the hospital.

For context, my friend had taken a Rapid Test Kit (RTK) Antigen test at a private clinic as instructed by her employer and she was tested positive for Covid-19 on Dec 23.

Being her housemate, the news sent shivers down my spine. My several other housemates and I tried our best to ensure that we were protected and at the same time, assist our unfortunate friend to ensure that her welfare was taken care of.

She had shown a mild symptom such as fever, flu, and cough. The doctor had given her paracetamol and antibiotics. I couldn't imagine how she felt.

We stayed in our respective rooms. When we needed to communicate with her, she would slightly open her door. We made sure that we wore face masks when communicating and observed our distance.

When we did not order food from outside, we took turns to cook. Meals for the patient were prepared in a special container. Then we used antiseptics liquids to wash the dish.

With the ordeal, came the stress. There were some of us who broke down and cried when they realised that they carried certain symptoms.

I myself had a headache and chest pain on the fourth day.

Meanwhile, my health evaluation status in the MySejahtera application changed from Patient Under Surveillance (PuS) to Suspect.

Last Monday, another housemate and I took a swab test at a clinic. The rest had not taken any test and they had to fully rely on MySejahtera regarding their health status.

Several days after my affected friend was tested positive, we attempted to contact the Klang and Petaling health clinics but to no avail.

It was only on the fifth day that she managed to call the Petaling health clinic and it redirected her call to the district health office. She took the PCR test on the sixth day.

We were made to learn that the health clinic received new cases every day, so these medical frontliners were very busy.

"You have to wait for your turn. They (health inspectors) will call you and I have no definite answer to your question," said the personnel to my friend.

Today, a housemate and I received our swab test and we heaved a sigh of relief as our results were negative.

However, this housemate of mine temporarily stayed at a hotel as she didn't want to take the risk since our affected friend has yet to be taken to the hospital.

I understand the challenges faced by our frontliners, but at the same time, I'm worried about our health too, especially for my friend who has tested positive.

I hope she will get proper treatment soon.

RASYIDAH ZULKIFLI is an intern from Universiti Teknologi Mara, Shah Alam. 

The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of Malaysiakini.

Govt should use public transport to ferry Covid-19 patients - Bukit Gasing rep

Health DG: Transport delays keeping asymptomatic cases at home

'Warning signs' in keeping asymptomatic Covid-19 cases at home - ex-minister

Health DG tells asymptomatic Covid-19 patients to self-isolate first