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Law360 (March 31, 2020, 12:18 PM EDT ) After having what he described as a "severe" case of COVID-19 that landed him in the intensive care unit "unconscious and intubated," New York City-based legal recruiter and journalist David Lat said on social media that his condition has improved and he expects to be released from the hospital soon.
Lat, 44, a managing director at legal recruiting firm Lateral Link and founder of the popular legal blog Above the Law, on March 16 publicly revealed his diagnosis, and urged those who came into contact with him after Feb. 23 to get tested for the novel coronavirus.
P.S. Look ma, no nasal cannula! Or non-rebreather mask. The mask I'm wearing here provides no oxygen; it's just to protect staff and patients. #coronavirus #COVID19 #Covid_19 #CoronaBoy pic.twitter.com/jFnpjWDG5h
— David Lat (@DavidLat) March 31, 2020
Since, he has documented his experience in Facebook and Twitter posts. On Tuesday morning, he tweeted a photo of his "non-rebreather mask."
"The mask I'm wearing here provides no oxygen; it's just to protect staff and patients," he said.
Lat revealed in a Facebook post on Saturday that he had been transferred out of the ICU and was "doing worlds better" than earlier in March, "when I was unconscious and intubated, having a machine breathe for me because I couldn't do so myself."
Since, in tweets he has attested to the importance of ventilators and the need for an adequate supply, and he expressed gratitude to the health care workers taking care of him. He has been under the care of NYU Langone Medical Center.
"Today marks two weeks at @nyulangone for me. It will probably be another few days before I'm released - but given how close I came to dying of #coronavirus (as a healthy 44-year-old), I'm not complaining," Lat said in a tweet Monday, which marked National Doctors' Day.
Lat thanked the NYU Langone team for saving his life and encouraged other patients to follow medical professionals' instructions, comply with requests and track details of their conditions.
So they saved my life maybe ~1.7 times. Thank you, Team @NYULangone - and my husband and our son and my family and friends thank you as well.#NationalDoctorsDay #NationalDoctorDay #NationalDoctorsDay2020 #Covid19usa #CoronavirusUSA #CoronavirusUSA
— David Lat (@DavidLat) March 31, 2020
"Be thankful. Express gratitude, early and often. Try not just to say the words but to feel them in your heart. These folks are putting themselves and their families at risk to help YOU," he tweeted.
Once out of the hospital and after he regains his strength, Lat said he hopes to social distance in the Berkshires.
Lat did not immediately respond to a request for comment Tuesday.
"I'm normally delighted to speak with journalists, but right now I'm trying to let my vocal cords heal after 6 days on a ventilator," he said in a tweet Monday.
Lat is a managing director in Lateral Link's New York office where he recruits and places associates, partners and partner groups in law firms across the country.
In the U.S., about 2,400 deaths have been linked to COVID-19, and there are more than 140,900 cases in all 50 states, Washington, D.C., and American territories, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's latest tally.
--Additional reporting by Aebra Coe. Editing by Alyssa Miller.
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