He was swept into office 26 days ago - but tonight, David "Dido" Vega is at Belize Healthcare Partners fighting for his life; he's in a very critical condition with COVID 19.
The 47 year old had tested positive a week ago, but had to be rushed to the ICU in Belize City after his health took a drastic turn on Saturday morning. He started having difficulty breathing and that was the sign that the COVID 19 had moved into his respiratory system.
Today - at his office in Belize City, Prime Minister John Briceno gave the press an update on Vega, saying that he was doing alright up until the middle of last week:
Hon. John Briceno, Prime Minister
"When he found out that he was positive on Wednesday, I spoke to him and he sounded pretty much normal. He said I feel a little bit tired Prime Minister, but I am doing good. He said I am going to keep in touch with you. On Friday I found out that he was at a small private clinic in Corozal, so that he was isolated from his family. Again, I spoke to him and he sounded well and he says that he is getting therapy for his lungs and the copping and so forth and he was taking out a lot of phlegm, but he says he is okay and that he is coping. He did not sound really sick. Saturday morning I was inform that he was being moved. I immediately called his family and then they said he just suddenly had a turn for the worse. Like all of a sudden he started having problems with his breathing and so forth and they felt that it's best to bring him to Belize City. So we quickly arrange for him to come to Belize Healthcare Partners and when he was there they stabilized him and he was doing well all day Saturday. Then around 10-11 I was alerted that he just took again a sudden turn and they had to intubate him."
"So, he was intubated and again he was normalize and then Sunday morning I heard that again he had another turn and they are having problems struggling to keep him stable. Fortunately, it seems that they finally manage to stabilize him, but he is still critical. The doctors are doing all they can and we are people of faith, so I am asking everyone to please pray for Dido Vega."
Reporter
"I read somewhere that there was some improvement that his oxygen levels were normalized?"
Hon. John Briceno, Prime Minister
"His oxygen level has been normalized since last night, but what they had to do is that the machine was at its fullest. It couldn't go anymore. So, if something would have happened let's say to put in more oxygen - but I'm told today that they have managed to bring down the strength of the machine, so the machine still have a little way should something happen that they need to fight to increase his oxygen level."
Jules Vasquez, reporter
"Mr. Prime Minister we know that persons on respirators, speaking in plainest terms, as far as I know only one person has been extubated and has survived and that's the doctor from the western region. Once you are intubated in Belize, the sad reality is the chances of survival are not high. We are told Mr. Vega's lungs are significantly built up with mucus which we know is a symptom of Covid."
Hon. John Briceno, Prime Minister
"That's why I say he is still critical. Statistically it's about 80% of the people will be okay, 15% will need medical attention and 5% are going into intubation. The thing is to make sure that that 15% don't go there, we have to do everything possible to try to keep people away from getting to intubation and intubation is not only that is very difficult to survive, because even in the other countries you have rates as high as more than 60% of not surviving. So what we need to do the strategy has to be that that 15% or that 20% is to give them the proper medical attention so that they don't need intubation."
