Unvaccinated COVID Patient Apologizes To Seattle Hospital Staff

SEATTLE — A Seattle man who spent almost a month at Harborview Medical Center, and nearly died from COVID-19 complications, recently returned to the hospital to offer his thanks — and an apology — to the people who cared for him.

As the Washington Post reports, Richard Soliz, 54, chose not to get vaccinated against COVID-19 and tested positive for the virus in August. His wife told the newspaper Soliz developed blood clots in his lungs and ended up on a ventilator and was "literally hanging on by a thread."

After weeks of care, he recovered enough to be discharged in September.

As CNN reports, Soliz said he felt embarrassed about his decision not to get the vaccine and decided to make a trip back to the hospital to apologize to the doctors and nurses who helped keep him alive.

"I am certain that there is truth to this virus, and not being vaccinated leaves you vulnerable to the extent of possibly really taking a person's life," Soliz said. "I personally know that, because I was not vaccinated. I did not act, I wasn't certain, and I nearly lost my life."

According to CNN, Dr. James Town, who was Soliz's pulmonologist during his stay, was grateful to hear from his former patient.

"I knew that the spirits in our hospital and our unit had been down because of how hard things have been lately, and difficulty with staffing shortages and things like that," Town said. "I just felt like that was the king of message that our staff needed to hear that people really did appreciate them.

Soliz told CNN he has since been fully vaccinated and encourages others to do the same.

Read more via the Washington Post and CNN.