A terrifying COVID- 19 experience, however, San Fernando East MP Brian Manning has turned the corner.
But if he hadn’t had a vaccine, his story today could have been much worse.
“It would have been very different and could have ended badly” said Manning’s wife Shelly Dass-Manning on Thursday.
“Brian was an athlete and he has no comorbidities. His body took a hit and that vaccine gave him the extra strength to fight the virus which had progressed very rapidly.”
Dealing with COVID was the last thing the couple expected to mark their one-year wedding anniversary this weekend.
“We said in sickness and in health, but it doesn’t cross your mind that a year later you’ll be needing urgent hospital help,” Dass-Manning said.
The PNM San Fernando East MP’s first sign of COVID just over a week ago manifested first as extreme tiredness. Dass-Manning said, “He works long hours, constituency issues, Finance, plans and projects, and it’s the end of the year so people feel tired. Then he developed a high fever suddenly and then an unusual cough. We called the doctor and she checked his oxygen levels immediately—they were very low.”
Dass-Manning, who went on to develop COVID also, was the one who drove her husband to the hospital they were referred to. Twenty-four hours later he was taken to the Couva Hospital.
“Tests and scans were done and they immediately started treating him. It’s almost like the roll of dice on how you are affected, so you should not take chances. My symptoms were mild compared to his, but we are both in good health and fully vaccinated. And vaccination proved to be vital, he needed every bit of protection it offered.
“This is a battle for your health and no one should underestimate it. People are being rolled out of wards dead every day,” she said.
Admitting that his oxygen levels plunged to an alarming level, she said, “He was an athlete, in excellent condition and had no cormobidities, a big muscular guy. His blood pressure and pulse reflect good health. His body is very strong. We live in the same house, sleep in the same bed. This thing is unpredictable, we were affected very differently. You just don’t know which way it will go, so get vaccinated. I lost my sense of smell temporarily and had a couple hours of harsh symptoms including high fever but it didn’t last.”
Dass-Manning said the vaccines available may not be perfect but they give people a chance.
She acknowledged that people had freedom of choice but pointed out that the doctors, nurses and other healthcare workers are the ones on the frontline who have to pick up the pieces.
She said, “These are people like me and you in that they have families, kids, parents. Their job is to keep you alive. They’re wearing three and four layers of clothes and multiple masks. Some I dealt with, I’ve never seen their faces…just the seriousness in their eyes.
“They’re bending over backwards to take care of people and they are doing their best. I’m seeing the main health team also being mocked and vilified–Dr Parasram, Hinds, Richards and the others. They are doctors trying to hold a health system together in less than ideal circumstances. They are treating everyone and every situation as fast as they can. They don’t see race, and politics when they are trying to help you. They were dealing with us and taking calls from complete strangers at the same time and helping everyone the same. Leave them alone.”
Acknowledging that her husband is a PNM Minister and MP, Dass-Manning indicated that support came from both his party and his colleagues and from people with different political views.
She said, “When they realised what was happening, they showed up for us, making sure we had basics, that we had support. Chefs who don’t share his political views were making sure we were fed and both OK. This is what makes Trinidad and Tobago great. We are Trinidadians and Tobagonians first. In all of this chaos, that is what we must remember.”