MUNSTER, Ind. (WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- A Lansing man is back home after a two-month ordeal with COVID-19.
Russell Loquist was wheeled out of Community Hospital in Munster, as staff applauded, cheered, and held signs reading “We believe in you,” “Stay Strong,” and “Not today, COVID.”
"You made in man," said one staffer, resulting in more cheering.
Loquist said it was the first time he was able to see all of the people who cared for him while he fought COVID-19.
He was released on April 27. The 57-year-old father of two was able to hug his wife and two sons before being taken to rehab.
“It was a lot of joy, seeing my family and being able to hug them, even for a few minutes before I was put in an ambulance to go to physical rehab,” Loquist told the Northwest Indiana Times.
Video of Loquist's release from Community Hospital was posted May 1 and has since received over 11,000 views on YouTube.
This past Saturday, he was back home. Friends and family welcomed him home with a car caravan.
But his road back home was not easy. According to the Northwest Indiana Times, Loquist began to feel feverish and was short of breath on March 25 and the next day he went to the Community Hospital in Munster.
“Yvonne helped get me into a wheelchair and into the ER lobby, but she was told she couldn’t go any further," Loquist recalled. “They put a mask on me and I took a selfie going into the ER, and that was the last thing I could remember.”
Loquist was moved to the ICU and put on a ventilator for two weeks. During this time, he had to be out into a drug-induced coma to ease the strain on his lungs.
While hospitalized, Loquist’s health took a turn for the worse as mucus buildup affected his heart. He had been near death. His wife, Yvonne, signed a do not resuscitate order on Easter Sunday.
Loquist was discharged April 27 from the hospital. He was then sent to a physical therapy facility in South Holland, Ill., to gain his strength before he was cleared to return home.