ODESSA, Texas — No room for treatment in the Midland-Odessa area. That was the reality that Billy Spruill was facing a few weeks ago when he came down with COVID-19.
Spruill died on Aug. 3, after a bout with COVID-19. This was after his wife, Mikala Reznik-Spruill, was told that ORMC could not fully treat her husband. Billy had to be airlifted to El Paso, the only place able to take him at the time.
Billy was a healthy, vaccinated man when he came down with COVID-19. In fact, he had just finished a bike race in which he and his team raised a total of $100,000 for an MS fundraiser.
However, it is still unclear as to when he was exposed.
"We are unclear when that exposure happened," Mikala said. "We are unclear when he was actually positive, but whenever he was tested by his physician, we were very very surprised because he really felt fine."
Mikala said that due to the type of treatment her husband needed, ORMC was not equipped and did not have the space to take care of him.
"No beds were available," Mikala said. "And then also, had we gone to their ER, we would’ve had a bed, but ORMC was not in the situation to be able to take a patient needing this extended respiratory care with the oxygenation being an issue."
All of the talk surrounding governmental mask mandates has raised the question of whether or not masks should be required.
Mikala doesn't necessarily believe that the government should mandate masks. Rather, she believes it should fall on the individual to want to take care of each other and keep each other safe.
"It’s not even a governmental issue," Mikala said. "It’s a community issue, and how do we care for ourselves and our family and care for neighbors? How do we love one another and do that in a responsible way?"
More than anything, she wants people to understand that this virus is very real.
"First off, we need to be taking this more seriously and not making the presumption that everybody is going to have a mild case and can be managed at home," Mikala said. "That was a mistake."