Hamilton man has change of heart about COVID vaccine after virus lands him in ICU

A month ago, Andre Smith was a little hesitant about receiving the COVID-19 vaccine.

Then he caught the virus.

A scary bout with COVID-19 that landed Smith in intensive care last week has now prompted the young father of three to reconsider being vaccinated.

And he wants other unsure people to do the same.

COVID is real and its impact is real," a humbled Smith, 43, said Friday from a hospital room at St. Joseph's Healthcare Hamilton. I firmly believe I will be getting the vaccine now, and I encourage everyone who is hesitant to have a serious discussion with their family and family doctor."

Smith began feeling coronavirus symptoms around April 15.

At first, he thought it was a run-of-the-mill cold - the same one he gets every year.

Headaches, some chills, a runny nose, weakness, fatigue.

Then it hit him like a ton of bricks.

I actually had to pull out a space heater because I felt like I was consistently in -40 degree weather without clothing," he said. I would wake up in a winter jacket soaking wet. There was something clearly wrong."

Smith said when he went to get tested for COVID-19 on April 19, he was so weak it took him hours to just put on a pair of pants.

And doctors at St. Joe's West 5th Campus assessment centre could tell.

The doctor that was there said, I'm doing the test because you're here - but you're not going home. I can't allow you to go home like this. I'm calling 911,'" said Smith. The ambulance came right away and took me to the emergency department."

Within hours, Smith was in an ICU bed and hooked up to supplemental oxygen - thinking to himself how it got so bad, so quickly.

It was really intense," said Smith, who was an otherwise healthy person prior to his COVID diagnosis. I had no control over anything. The ICU gives you perspective on your life and purpose.

You see life right in front of you, and how it could be gone just like that."

Smith said he didn't harbour dark thoughts during his five-day stay in the ICU. Instead, he thought about his wife and children - all of whom also have since tested positive for COVID-19 - and what his loss would mean for them.

I have two-and-a-half-year-old son at home," he said. Being a Black dad, I have a responsibility to him, and there's so much I have left to teach him about the barriers we face ... COVID could have robbed me of that."

Smith was released from hospital Friday and considers himself blessed" to be alive. He thanked all of the St. Joe's staff - from doctors and nurses to cooks and cleaners - for their around-the-clock help" to get him home.

The change of heart he's had about the COVID-19 vaccine is a common trend currently playing out among young patients in Hamilton hospitals, said Dr. Steven Wong, a general internist at St. Joe's who treated Smith.

There's a sense of, Could I have done something different (and got the vaccine)?' for some of these patients," said Wong. There's other patients who say, I was just waiting for my turn and didn't get it soon enough. But, boy, am I going to be right in line when I'm eligible again.'"

Wong said Smith is the best example" for the argument in favour of vaccinations - a young guy with no prior health conditions who became critically ill with COVID and is lucky to come out the other side."

If one of the reasons someone doesn't want the vaccine is because, I'm younger, I'm fit,' I would say: you know what, the disease is changing," he said. We see it. These are a lot of young people and totally healthy people getting really, really sick.

You've just got to protect yourself and the people around you - and just get the first vaccine you're offered."

Sebastian Bron is a Hamilton-based reporter at The Spectator. Reach him via email: sbron@thespec.com