Basem Enany is in intensive care at Leeds General Infirmary after a rare complication from coronavirus – and his family face an anxious wait to see if they will be able to stay in the UK
Dr Enany asks his wife about the visa situation despite his grave plight
The wife of a doctor fighting coronavirus on a ventilator said “the whole thing is like a bad dream” as she and her four daughters face having to leave the UK
The family of the “loved and respected” hospital consultant face an anxious wait to see if they will have to leave the UK while he remains in intensive care.
A fundraising campaign has begun to help get legal assistance for 44-year-old consultant cardiologist Dr Basem Enany, who is in intensive care at Leeds General Infirmary after developing a rare complication of Covid-19.
Dr Enany’s wife and four daughters have been unable to visit him in hospital due to the virus and now face the prospect of having to leave the UK when the Egyptian locum’s contract expires at the end of November.
Enany’s wife, who did not wish to give her full name, told the Guardian: “I can’t believe this is happening. The whole thing is like a bad dream. My husband is young and very talented. We never thought we would face something like this.
“He loves his work so much. Even when he first got Covid he was working online from home on his emails and looking at his referrals.
She added: “Our four daughters are very well settled here. All of them love school and are happy here.
His friend and colleague at York Hospital, Dr Sanjay Gupta, said Dr Enany regularly spent long shifts on Covid wards looking after very sick patients at the height of the pandemic.
But in mid-September the fit and well consultant developed the symptoms himself, although he did not catch the virus at York Hospital as he was on leave.
Dr Gupta, who is also a consultant heart specialist, said his friend developed a weakness in both legs and this turned very rapidly into a progressive paralysis that spread to his arms and then his respiratory muscles.
He said Dr Enany was diagnosed with Guillain-Barre syndrome, which is a rare complication of some viruses, including Covid-19, only seen in 31 other cases across the world.
Dr Enany was put on a ventilator a fortnight ago and remains unable to move his arms and legs or breathe unassisted, although his brain is still functional and he is able to communicate.
Dr Gupta said: “He came to this country to help and now he is in a terrible situation.
“It’s just horrible what’s happened to him and we all just want to do everything we can to help.”
“There is a chance that he may be able to regain the ability to breathe without support and gain function of his limbs but there is also a high chance that he may not make it, or be left with permanent disability.
“What is certain is that he will spend several months in intensive care and will not be able to go back to the profession that he loved so dearly for several months or even years.”
Dr Gupta said Dr Enany was working as a locum at York Hospital before he became ill, but his contract is due to finish at the end of November.
He said his friend’s work visa will not be renewed and, therefore, his wife and four daughters, the youngest of whom is four, are likely to be asked to leave the UK.
