Wednesday night Evan Dahl was struck with a sudden fever, something relatively uncommon for the Lunenburg County man.
He felt sleeping it off would be best, but when it came back Thursday accompanied with a headache, he began to panic.
“I never get sick,” he said, “So my only thought was, ‘Oh no, what is my body trying to fight off now.’ That’s when I decided to call 811.”
The Nova Scotia Health Authority has updated its testing prerequisites recently, asking anyone experiencing high fevers, headaches, runny nose and a new, worsening cough to call for testing.
Upon calling 811, Dahl was set up with an appointment for the following day at the public health office in Bridgewater, but after being tested, he said he was left with a feeling of worry, uncertainty and frustration.
“When they did my vitals, my fever was 39.4, which was high, and my heart rate was 142,” said Dahl.
“I think they were concerned with my health and told me ‘We are going to send you to the hospital, there is definitely something going on here.’ I began to panic because I really don’t get sick, but all I could think was ‘Oh god, there really is something going on with me.”
He said the nurse called ahead to South Shore Regional to notify them he was on his way, and sent him off stating the test would take 24-72 hours.
Dahl says despite dealing with an unpleasant nurse, the care while he was at SSRH for the most part was phenomenal, but the time between the test and being seen at the hospital was filled with uncertainty and panic-induced worry about the potential of having the virus.
“I get tonsillitis every once in a while, but I’ve never had just a fever and a headache,” he said, “Having those two symptoms, I was pretty scared.”
He says he has since received his results, and luckily tested negative for the virus.
Dahl outlined his experience on his Facebook page, which can be found here.
