Shul News & Notes

Shul Member Survives As Others Die Around Him

 

On April 2, shul member Harold Neimark was admitted to Maimonides Hospital in Brooklyn, critically ill with coronavirus. The Shofar talked with Hal Neimark and Nina Neimark, his wife, about the onset of the disease, his treatment, seemingly miraculous survival, and the after-effects some four months later.

Make no mistake, as Hal Neimark’s experience will attest, Covid-19 is not the common cold, and not the flu. It is a devastatingly

potent killer. As of July 16, 138,000 Americans have died from complications of this disease. It continues to linger here on the North Fork where, as Hal Neimark said, we must be prepared psychologically to maintain safety precautions for up to another 12 to 18 months — until a vaccine can be developed and distributed worldwide to contain the virus and prevent those infected from spreading it through close contact. “Until then, we need to make up our minds to wear a mask,” he said, “and to maintain physical distancing. It’s not that onerous.”

 

Shofar: How did you come in contact with the disease?

Neimark: At the outset of the epidemic, I suspected it would spread, but Nina and I wanted to see our family in Philadelphia before we were quarantined. We took a chance, and on March 6, we took a car service (not the subway) to Penn Station, and boarded a southbound train. We spent Shabbat with our son, his wife, and our grandchildren, and took the train back home the next day. On Sunday, we went to a busy supermarket and a pizza parlor for takeout. It was early in the public understanding of the disease and what was to come. No one was wearing a mask. Two weeks later, I lost my appetite and sense of taste.

 

Shofar: What were your symptoms?

Neimark: Apart from losing my appetite and sense of taste, the most concerning development was that I wasn’t thinking straight. It was this vague feeling that something was wrong, and my behavior seemed irrational. I was unable to function as I should. At first, I thought it was something intestinal. I made an appointment with my gerontologist, Janine Kelly, MD, and she thought I had some kind of unspecified virus. She sent me for an intestinal x-ray. Two weeks after that, I became very ill.

 

Shofar: What did you do next?

Neimark: Nina saved my life. She insisted on calling Dr. Kelly again because she didn’t like the way I was breathing. Dr. Kelly insisted I come to the office immediately, where she discovered that my blood oxygen level had plunged to a dangerously low 40%.

 

Shofar: Is that what triggered hospitalization?

Neimark: Yes. Dr. Kelly admitted me to Maimonides Hospital, where the emergency room doctors suspected Corona. There were so many cases by that time that an entire hospital floor had been converted to a Covid floor.

 

Shofar: How did the ER respond to your symptoms?

Neimark: The first step in my treatment was an oxygen mask. The doctors monitored me, hoping to raise the blood oxygen level to 100%. That was the start. I learned later that one of Dr. Kelly’s colleagues said that with a blood oxygen level as low as mine, I should have been dead. A scan of my lungs confirmed Covid.

 

Shofar: Were any drugs administered?

Neimark: While I was in the hospital, I received my usual medications plus an anticoagulant injection to reduce the possibility of a clot formation. Nina Neimark said that Hal had received an “experimental drug” for five days, but neither she nor Hal was able to identify it. Hal said he was so ill as to be unaware of most of the treatment.

 

Shofar: I’m surprised you were unaware, considering your medical background. [Hal Neimark is a retired microbiologist and immunologist, whose professional career was divided between research and teaching 2nd- and 4th-year medical students at the SUNY Downstate Medical School.]

Neimark: I was too ill. I know that the staff took precautions when treating me; they were gowned and masked, with Plexiglas protection in front of their masks.

 

Shofar: Were you intubated?

Neimark: No. I didn’t need that and, in fact, the procedure is so traumatic that although it was a common procedure early on, later it was considered a last resort. No intubation. No ventilator.

 

Shofar: What were the major concerns during your hospitalization?

Neimark: The doctors’ major concern was my oxygen level. The nurses and I carefully monitored that, in addition to my weight. I kept losing weight. My major concern was eating enough and sleeping enough. It’s difficult to sleep in a hospital. Even though you are asleep, the staff insists on waking you to take your temperature.

 

Shofar: How long did you remain extremely ill?

Neimark: After 4 or 5 days, I felt better. But the doctors continued to be concerned about weight loss. I’m not a large person, and could ill afford to lose weight. I forced myself to eat, but it was a slow process. Swallowing and eating meals could take me 1-1/2 hours. In fact, some of the hospital food was quite good, but it was physically difficult for me to eat.

 

Shofar: Did you have roommates in the hospital?

Neimark: I had three consecutive roommates; two of them died. I hope the third survived. A former colleague of mine at SUNY also died. He died of the same Coronavirus he was treating at Maimonides.

 

Shofar: To what do you attribute your survival?

Neimark: Realistically, I don’t know. This is a respiratory disease. I never smoked. My main exercise was fast walking outside, which may have strengthened my lungs. That may or may not have been a factor. The virus did scar my lungs, however; I find now that when I climb a couple of flights of stairs, I’m out of breath, and this is a change. I never had that problem before. In the hospital, I was meticulous about wearing my oxygen mask, and that surely contributed to my survival.

 

Shofar: How long were you in the hospital?

Neimark: Three and a half weeks. I entered on April 2 and was released on April 26. I had excellent care, and I feel lucky to be alive. [Hal Neimark is 88 years old. According to a physician The Shofar consulted about Covid-19, the majority of Covid patients survive, but Hal Neimark is one of the few in his age group.]

 

Shofar: Were any special preparations needed for you to return home?

Neimark: I had to be weaned from the oxygen mask in order to come home. At home, I used a nasal cannula (portable oxygen). I also had a device that I blew into to help expand my lungs. I started using it in the hospital and continued at home. I found it helpful.

 

Shofar: Now that you have had the disease, do you assume you are immune?

Neimark: I think so. In fact, if I weren’t so thin, I could probably donate antibodies to help others. That protection indicates to me that a vaccine is possible.

 

Shofar: An article in the July 2, 2020, New York Times reported that Covid patients returning home after hospitalization are confronting physical, neurological, cognitive and emotional issues. Do you have lingering effects from the virus?

Neimark: Yes, I experienced some of those conditions. My sense of taste has returned, but I still don’t have a big appetite. And I tire easily. I need to exercise, but I have little stamina  At first, I couldn’t function well; for instance, I couldn’t add the numbers to do our taxes. One of my legs was quite swollen, but that is somewhat better now. And at first, I needed both hands to feed myself.

 

Shofar: How should the synagogue respond to the threat the virus imposes?

Neimark: The synagogue should reach out to the congregation as much as it can to maintain connections while the building is closed. The Lunch and Learn program is an excellent addition. Maybe other activities like it can be initiated, until there is a vaccine. Outdoor activity in small groups on a sunny day (not on an overcast day), masked, and 6 feet apart would be okay.

 

Shofar: Overall, what is your observation on the handling of this pandemic?

Neimark: The nation is fortunate to have Dr. Anthony Fauci’s advice. If we had listened to him from the outset, thousands of lives could have been saved. As for the future, we need to be prepared psychologically to continue the protocols because this virus is going to be with us for a very long time, maybe as long as another year and a half. We need to make up our minds to take the precautions, specifically, to wear a mask. It’s not that onerous. You’ll get used to it.

Sara Bloom text

Kait Yulman photo