A COVID-19 survivor that was in a coma for several weeks, recently returned back to a Florida hospital to thank staff members, saying, "I'm alive because of you."
Maureen Woods, 56, of Levi County, recently returned to the Orlando Health-Health Central Hospital in Ocoee to thank staff members after spending several weeks in the hospital battling COVID-19, local news station WESH 2 News reported.
"Thank you from the bottom of my heart for everything you did for me and my husband while I was here. Words can't express how much I'm grateful," Woods told hospital staff members when she returned, according to WESH.
Woods was first admitted to the hospital on July 24 after she was experiencing pain from a kidney stone. After being admitted, she went into septic shock, her lung collapsed and she eventually became infected with COVID-19.
"My organs started shutting down. It was apparently dire straits. They had my husband call the family in," she said.
Woods spent a total of 53 days in the hospital, including 39 days in the Critical Care Unit. She was fighting to survive while in a coma for almost three weeks.
"Her oxygen levels were very, very low. She had some critical points where we had some really difficult conversations," Orlando Health's Dr. Joel Santora told the news station.
She was eventually transferred to the hospital's rehab unit before she was discharged.
"It's a testament of the team, passion of the team, Maureen's willpower to live—faith, medicine. It's an awesome combination," Santora said.
Woods explained that while it was "overwhelming" to see how many different staff members worked to help her, she said that "it was gratifying to be able to thank them for everything they did for me and my husband."
"Having someone like me come through all of this—come back and thank them and say I'm alive because of you," she said. "I hope they go home tonight feeling good about what they do."
Woods' husband, Clay, also spoke to WESH about his wife's experience in the hospital saying "There were sometimes that we didn't know if my wife was going to make it."
"They were telling me to keep positive thoughts and, you know, 'we've got the best doctors the best people looking after her,'" Clay added.
Newsweek reached out to Orlando Health for comment but did not receive a response in time for publication.
