For 25-year-old Nabajit Borah, serving patients has been a profession and passion. Full of energy, the young doctor just joined at the Bholabori 10-bedded hospital in Assam’s North Lakhimpur in March as the COVID-19 pandemic was making its presence felt gradually in the state.
Amid the crisis, Nabajit, along with his fellow doctors, almost tackled whatever came their way. But the worst came on June 9, when Nabajit tested positive for COVID-19.
“When I got to know, I trembled for a moment and somehow managed to call my parents, with a broken voice. I was relieved at their response, telling me we will fight it together, don’t be scared,” Nabajit told The News Mill over phone from his home at Bholabari.
Nabajit is now out of danger and is at home quarantine after testing negative on June 16.
“Though I was mentally prepared to face anything, to be honest I was not expecting to get infected. So, it was a little depressing initially. But I have emerged stronger from that experience. I’m just waiting to get over my period of quarantine and resume my work. With the scenario getting deteriorated, people like us need to be at work as early as possible,” Nabajit reckoned.
Being a frontline worker, who always dedicated himself for the patients, he had to be treated by others. “It was a little uneasy situation and I was sad,” he said, adding that he is grateful for the staff and doctors at the Lakhimpur Civil Hospital for making his stay there comfortable.
“It’s a lifetime experience to be in such a situation. I tried to watch movies and was in touch with family members constantly which helped me to gain confidence. So, I would like to urge everyone not to be discouraged. It’s normal and we should fight it together,” Nabajit added.
How It Started
After his joining at the Bholabori hospital, Nabajit was assigned at Telahi COVID hospital within the district.
“After a series of training, I along with my six teammates was given the duty to look after the COVID-19 patients who were migrant workers coming from different states and are from Lakhimpur district. There were 44 positive patients. They seemed reluctant to abide by the rules, broke the barricade and started roaming, spitting here and there, making it difficult for the team to handle the situation. They were not cooperative and also threatened health workers making the entire team helpless. It was terrible,” Nabajit said.
After completing seven days duty at the COVID hospital Nabajit and his team were sent for quarantine in a hotel. And there he started to feel unwell and he started to lose taste and smell along with rising temperature.
“I was down with fever and had the feel of possibly being contaminated at Telahi COVID Hospital. And the worst fear came true when my results came positive,” he added. Along with him, two ward boys and a pharmacist were also tested positive from the same team.
After weeks now, Nabajit will be all set to get back to action, braving all the odds.
