By 1News.co.nz. Republished with permission.
A young Māori doctor who was hospitalised with Covid-19 is urging his community to be vaccinated against the virus.
“Covid will be coming for a lot of our whānau,” said Dr Jason Tuhoe, who works as a GP at the Papakura Marae Health Clinic.
Tuhoe has a unique experience of Covid-19. Not only is he treating Covid-19 patients, last year he was left seriously unwell after contracting the virus.
“I was a GP working in Tokoroa at the time and had been managing the Covid-positive patients who were there. I became unwell with it at the same time,” he said.
“My whānau were here in Auckland with my wife. We had made that decision to be separate because of Covid, and then I ended up hospitalised, and ended up with pneumonia.”
After recovering from Covid-19 at Waikato Hospital, Tuhoe needed six months off work to recover from the virus.
“It was a bad time physically but also emotionally and wairua nei.”
“It wasn’t a very good time for me at all or for my whānau and we’ve only just recently started talking about our experiences in the hope that it allows our whānau to share what we went through.”
Tuhoe has now returned to the front line of the Covid-19 response, treating dozens of patients who have tested positive for the virus. The majority of those patients have not been fully vaccinated against the virus.
“Consider vaccination and consider it seriously. It’s such an important aspect in regards to how we’re going to be managing this pandemic,” he said.
“Even though I was unwell with the virus, I still made that conscious decision to be vaccinated because I knew that it would give not only myself protection, but also protection for my whānau.”
Tuhoe is urging households in his community to prepare to isolate at home with the virus.
“The other thing that I think is important right now is to really consider the whānau plan, and having a plan in place for when Covid comes.”
“Things like ensuring that you’ve got enough support, making sure you have enough of your regular medications, making sure your conditions are stable, making sure you have those numbers that you have to contact in case you need any additional help.”
