Hillcrest Medical Staff Remains Resilient, Sends Recovered COVID-19 Patient Home After 28 Days

A man who has been in the hospital for nearly a month with COVID-19 is now back home.

The virus has taken the lives of more than 100 Oklahomans but more than 1,000 people have recovered.

“Everybody gets along with Christopher,” said Hillcrest Hospital RN Kara.

Christopher Fisher has been in the hospital for 28 days. He has been in a COVID-19 unit for people who test positive for the disease but are still stable, meaning they don't need a ventilator.

"He said, ‘it is awful to be sick. That is the first thing he said when I met him on Day 1," said Kara.

Kara is the nurse who has been taking care of Chris for the last three weeks.

"It is just such a celebration when you get to see them go home and overcome something like this," said Kara.

At the beginning of March, staff at Hillcrest started practicing what they would do when they started seeing COVID-19 patients. The drills worked when their first patient showed up, days later, on March 15th.

"We provide the proper PPE that they need in order to take care of airborne patients. They check their temperatures twice a day, and also the air flow up here is all negative air, so it is very clean, filtered air," said Hillcrest Chief Nursing Officer Jodi Simmons.

Hospital staff said their plan has been to stay one step ahead, of every phase they are in.

"Resilience is the word I like to use. They are resilient," said Simmons.

They have refused to let down their patients, refused to let down their team and the community has been there to support them every step of the way- some people adopting floors of the hospital and feeding teams of people.

"I am just so proud to be named along such a great group of people who are willing to put their own health on the line and really just come and take care of the patients and do what it takes every day," said Kara.

On Wednesday, for the first time, Hillcrest infused the plasma of a COVID-19 survivor, into a COVID-19 patient who is still fighting. If the treatment works, it could be a game changer.

If you are a COVID-19 survivor, please consider donating plasma at the American Red Cross. Read more about the process that you can find here.