Contextually, the virus during this initial phase was not taken seriously or, at least, not with the awareness that we have acquired to date.
My father’s symptoms were, thus, attributed to a normal flu.
Within one week, saturation decreased significantly and it was necessary to hospitalize him.
In the beginning, everything was under control, but two days later the family received a telephone call indicating that the situation had gotten worse and hospitalization in intensive care followed.
The majority of patients with serious oxygenation problems must go through tracheal intubation in order to stay alive.
An essential maneuver that was necessary and normal even for my father.
Intubation lasted for months, a very long period no doubt, but throughout our misfortune we still had the hope that all would go well.
Unfortunately, for each patient whose health worsens, with particular conditions, I am clearly aware that there are unpleasant consequences that come afterwards – the moment in which you usually should breathe a sigh of relief, but my father had damage in his trachea and esophagus (an esophageal-tracheal fistula).
At this point, I personally followed the race of the primary physician and staff, who treated my father for all these months, to find professionals and hospitals able to resolve this problem. One of these clinics, at the beginning, seemed able to handle the situation and my father had been transferred there, but after three days they contacted me to say there wasn’t any more chance of a successful outcome and that I had to prepare myself for the worst.
There wasn’t anything else left to do. He wouldn’t have made it through the surgery and that we should just give up.
The person who had followed the case from the beginning did not agree with this ultimatum, thus he continued to look for a professional who could perform the surgery.
I was worried because I had been following my father’s situation for a long time and the relief I mentioned before hadn’t arrived yet and I was starting to think that it wasn’t ever going to come.
After additional procedures and tests, I met Dr. Umberto Cariboni who had perhaps sensed my feelings and said to me: “If there wasn’t any possibility for a successful outcome I wouldn’t be taking charge of the problem”.
Nonetheless, to truly believe these words I had to hear others that were more significant and liberating, such as those that came after the surgery: “The operation went in the best possible manner”.
There were moments and seconds – for an undefined, but very short period – in which I thought the worst was going to happen. Even so, everything has a different significance when you can barely see the scar on my father’s skin. The rehabilitation phase is long, but my father is still leading an athletic life and everyday he is already taking a step forward.
I can now say that he is doing well, but instead I feel like shouting that he will continue to do well thanks to a doctor who that day guided his staff and dared.
He decided to perform a surgery that was very risky and borderline, but that was the only possibility for my father: he made the decision and gave a man his life back.
As children we thought doctors were superheroes, but they would probably say that they are just doing their job.
Now, as an adult, I really should think that some aren’t just doing their duty, but I will continue to believe that I met a superhero”.