Dave's COVID-19 Recovery

While many COVID-19 patients get to battle the illness and recover at home, others aren’t so lucky. Take Vincennes resident David Blann for example. When Dave came down with COVID-19 it hit him hard. He was first diagnosed on October 28, 2020, which also happened to be him and his wife’s anniversary.

Two days later, Dave was admitted to Good Samaritan’s ICU and ended up being on a ventilator for nine days. After 28 days in the ICU, Dave eventually spent 43 more in the hospital’s rehabilitation unit.

“I feel like I had really good care,” said Dave. “I have worked in the Boiler Room at Good Samaritan for 24 years, so as a previous employee I would be honest about it. Everyone that took care of me was patient and always nice.”

Although he couldn’t remember much when he was on the ventilator, Dave does recall having terrible nightmares and bad dreams. Because he was bedridden for an extended period of time, he developed bedsores that had to be removed in surgery because of the amount of infected tissue. The tissue was so damaged that for the next few months, Dave has to wear a wound pump to help with the healing of these wounds.

Dave was transferred to Inpatient Rehab from the ICU because of his limited mobility. “I couldn’t even bring my arm up to touch my face,” he said. “But everyone that took care of me was outstanding. You see the way they treat other patients around you and you can tell that they really care. If it were up to me, I would come back here to finish the rest of my rehab therapy.”

On the day of his discharge from Rehab, multiple members of his care team stopped by to say their goodbye’s and wish him well. “It makes me want to cry to see him walking on his own,” stated one of his nurses on Rehab. “He has just come such a long way.”

As seen in Dave’s health journey, COVID-19 is a very real and serious virus, but there are still critics out there that are skeptical to the validity of the disease. “What I went through is scary and there are still a lot of people out there that need to learn more about it,” said Dave. “I will be one of the first people to get the vaccine when I can. Anyone who does not take advantage of it, I think, is really foolish. If people could see what I have seen and had to go through, they would get the shot. They just don’t realize the effects COVID-19 can have on a person.”

Dave is now back home and continues to work on his physical therapy. As a self-proclaimed outdoorsman he has spent the four years of his retirement playing golf, fishing and hunting. “I just want to keep improving so I can get back to normal,” he said. “I missed hunting season this past year and I don’t want to miss it again!”

Follow up with Dave:

Following up with Dave two months after being discharged from Good Samaritan, he is happy to say that things are going well. “I gain a little ground every day,” he said. He has completed his physical therapy, is no longer needing to be on oxygen and his bedsore wound is almost completely healed. Dave wanted to take a moment and thank doctors Philip Watson, DO and Allison Thomas, MD. “Dr. Watson has helped me many times, even before I had COVID,” said Dave. “If it wasn’t for Drs. Watson and Thomas, I don’t know where I would be.” Dave happily received both of his COVID-19 vaccinations and is ready to get back on the golf course.