Christian author and Child advocate, Dickson Tumuramye [right] shares how he nursed his daughter [left], when she tested positive for Covid-19: ‘I write this story to inform parents to be vigilant and watchful.’ Photo Credit: Dickson Tumuramye.
On 10th June 2021, my wife and I reached home at around 7:30pm and found our six-year-old girl complaining of fever. We gave her Panadol and the temperature minimized, but when I checked on her at around 3:30 am, the temperature had increased again. Since she did not show serious signs of flu, we had decided not to give her flu medication.
At 9am, I took her to the nearest clinic for medical check-up and her temperature was at 38 oC. A malaria test was recommended and it turned out negative. The Doctor recommended for a COVID-19 test and gave us a referral to a nearby government hospital. I went for a test reluctantly, being convinced that it was a mere cold. Reaching Mukono Hospital, there was an overwhelming number of people, and the Nurse carrying out tests categorically informed everyone who did not have a medical form with a COVID-19 recommendation or who did not first test for malaria to leave the line. She claimed that kits were over and had only very few. At 11:16am, the nurse collected medical forms from and we remained only 10 people in line.
What we went through at that hospital is a story for another day. But to cut the long story short, my daughter was tested and we got the results almost 5-hours later after pleading. All along my daughter seemed okay except that she was complaining of tiredness. At some point, when I told the nurse that my child was feeling bad due to high fever, her response was “I don’t work on emergencies; you can go and leave the results.”
When I received the results, I first thought I had read wrongly or because we had irritated the nurse and since she was rude to everyone who tried to question her professionalism, she could have made a mistake. I could not believe the results and decided to go for a confirmatory test in a private hospital. The test was done and within 15 minutes, I got my results. From this facility, the results were also positive and it’s here that I realized COVID-19 was real even among children. She was put on medication immediately administered from home since she did not warrant admission.
Counseling her
I write this story to inform parents to be vigilant and watchful. If you think COVID-19 is a joke or it’s among adults only, you may be heading for the worst-death! My daughter heard me tell someone that we have tested positive. Her response was “Daddy, you mean I have coronavirus, am I going to die?” I had to first counsel her and see how I could bring this bad news to her level of understanding without hiding the truth. But also, I started wondering how other children at home will handle this situation. A lot of questions lingered in my mind especially where she could have contracted it from. Anyhow, I resolved to go home and deliver the news to my household and ask them to ensure we observe all SOPs, and treat her well without stigmatising her.
Other family members
Reaching home, I shared the results with my family. I made sure her siblings are not terrified, and that my mother-in-law’s blood pressure remains stable. The following day, I took all other members for testing and fortunately we were all negative. This brought relief from the night of anxiety some members had experienced. My mother-in-law is in a category of the most vulnerable; so, we had to ensure she blocks any contact with our girl and she also tried her best.
We consistently wore masks all the time, whether we were in the house or outside, and ensured proper social distancing. We started steaming, taking immunity boosters and used whatever was recommended by doctors as well as what we read from credible sources on social media as a remedy for prevention and treating Covid-19. We did exercises every evening and sunbathing every morning. My wife and I stopped going to work and stayed at home. Our biggest challenge was isolating our daughter from the rest of the family. This was extremely difficult because she would tell us that we ‘no longer love her because she has Covid-19’, but since we earlier explained and counselled her about the disease, she also tried her best to do better.
Keeping calm, trusting God
God took us through this situation and now our daughter is fine. I would like to encourage you not to panic when you are faced with this pandemic. Stay calm and ensure that you take all your medication and follow the SOPs. Don’t think that when you tell others about your situation, they will stigmatise. Sharing helps you to get help. If you have not been there, try to see how to protect yourself from this ‘hell’. It can be devastating. Put your trust in God and keep praying for good health. Where possible, stay at home and stay safe.
The author is writer, child advocate, parenting coach and marriage counselor. More articles by the author Here
tumudickson@gmail.com
