Roth, 66, is a recovering COVID-19 patient receiving treatment, first in Calgary and now at St. Louis Hospital. Paul’s in Saskatoon, for nine months – 279 days, to be exact. His daughter, Kendra Roth, takes him out of the hospital in a wheelchair to get some fresh air and a short break from the hospital room. “I have gone to every floor of this hospital,” he said. “I had a lot of ups and downs. I was really gaining weight. Now I’m 240 pounds and I used to be 300 pounds.” He choked, adding, “It was difficult; COVID really caught me.” Roth was seen here Aug. 20 in the intensive care unit at Calgary’s Foothills Medical Center, where he was treated for six weeks before being taken to St. Louis Hospital. Paul in Saskatoon. (Roth Centers)
Roth is a water treatment plant supervisor and retired fire chief from La Loche, Sask., 600 miles northwest of Saskatoon. The unvaccinated grandfather was hospitalized for COVID-19 at Calgary’s Foothills Medical Center on July 24, 2021, while on a family vacation in Alberta. He spent weeks in a coma and was flown to Saskatoon in early September. His wife, Lauren, and daughter, Centra, moved to a hotel near St. Louis Hospital. Paul’s, where they have been staying since last fall. “Sometimes I went in, even at 3 in the morning; he had anxiety attacks because there was no one around who knew. So, as I go in, he calms down immediately. So, I sit here for everyone for a few hours of the day and night.” said Kendra. I had many ups and downs. It really took a lot of weight from me. I’m 240 lbs now and I’m 300 lbs.- Ken Roth, recovering from COVID-19
When the Saskatchewan ICU was flooded in October, Roth was among 27 patients sent to Ontario for treatment. At the time, Roth told CBC News that his abrupt transfer – without any notice or time to call his wife or daughter – reminded Métis that he was being taken to a home school as a child. Since returning to Saskatoon, Roth has recovered from pneumonia, adverse drug reactions, bladder infections and other problems. CLOCKS Details of native patients for traumatic transport outside the province:

Details of native patients for traumatic transport outside the province

A Saskatchewan Métis man urges health officials to be more sensitive when transporting COVID-19 patients out of the countryside. He says the process had an emotional price and brought back painful memories from school. 2:04

Long stay in the hospital

There are more than 400 COVID-19 patients in Saskatchewan hospitals, more than any other pandemic. However, more than half were admitted for diseases other than COVID, but tested positive for the virus. And only about 20 need intensive treatment as of April 27th. Some patients with COVID continue to spend large areas in the hospital. Ken’s wife, Lorraine, has spent nine months living in a hotel to be close to her husband while he is in the hospital. (Submitted by Ken Roth)
Dr. Alexander Wong is an infectious disease specialist who has treated patients who have spent months at Regina General Hospital. “Especially with Alpha and Delta [waves] “When we had so many critically ill patients who were so sick – we had so many people dying, but those who did not die obviously required enormous time and energy and resources to recover to the point where they could leave the system,” Wong said. . Most recently, according to the Saskatchewan Health Authority, 3,587 people with COVID-19 were admitted to Saskatchewan hospitals from October 2021 to the end of March 2022. Of those, 98 – or 2.7 percent – remained in hospital for more than 60 days. “Even if there are only a hundred people left over two months, the total amount of energy and labor and resources of the system and people and anything else needed to keep these people alive is astronomical,” Wong said. COVID-19 patient Ken Roth recovers in hospital bed on April 28, 2022, after 279 days in hospital: “COVID-19 really got me.” (Roth Centers)
Wong says that while there are fewer intensive care patients on the Omicron wave who will need this level of care, this is still happening.

Roth is grateful

Roth appreciates the medical staff who saved his life and now those who are trying to bring him back to his feet. “Some of them are really running to try to help their patients,” Roth said. The avid hunter is tired of being separated from his children and grandchildren, friends and former colleagues. He is also worried about paying the bills back home. As the sole feeder in his family, Roth operated the water treatment plant for the northern village of La Loche for more than 40 years, first as a clerk and then as a private contractor. But in February, his village cut wages without a single phone call, Roth says. La Loche Mayor Georgina Jolibois declined to comment. Robert St. Pierre, the former mayor who had overseen Roth’s work for years, says he is surprised the village did not try to help Roth with benefits. “I would have found a way to work with Ken and make things easier for him,” said Saint-Pierre.

Going home

Roth appreciates the support he has received from the Métis Nation-Saskatchewan. Kentra hopes to take her father home, even in a wheelchair, as soon as he is strong enough to take a few steps. (Bonnie Allen / CBC)
The former strong man needs to become a little stronger so that he can move to a rehab center and eventually return to La Loche. “If he can stand on his own and take a few steps, I’ll take him home,” Kendra said. “That is my goal, it is to take him home. Even if we have to use the wheelchair at home, I will take him home and take care of him there. We have support there.”