Kozhikode: Titto Thomas, a nurse who has been bedridden for over 20 months after contracting Nipah while treating a patient, has been granted ₹17 lakh from the Chief Minister’s Disaster Management Fund.

A native of South Canara, Titto has been incapacitated for the past twenty months and five days. The financial assistance has brought a measure of relief to his parents and brother, who still hold on to the hope that he will one day return to life as they knew it. His parents expressed their gratitude to the government for heeding their plea.

Titto, a staff nurse at Iqraa Hospital in Kozhikode, contracted Nipah while attending to a patient admitted on August 30, 2023. After recovering from the infection, he resumed duty, but soon began experiencing severe headaches. His health deteriorated rapidly and despite treatment, he slipped into a coma on December 8, 2023. He has remained in that state ever since.

His father, T C Thomas and mother, Eliyamma, have been staying at the hospital to care for him. His brother, Shijo Thomas, quit his job to be at his side for months before returning to work just three months ago.

The family, who depended on farming for their livelihood, lived in a modest home in South Canara. Since Titto’s hospitalisation, they have kept their home closed and have remained in Kozhikode to be with him.

Iqraa Hospital has been bearing a significant portion of the treatment expenses and the family expressed special gratitude to the hospital management for their support. “Earlier, Titto could not even breathe on his own, but now his condition is slowly improving,” said his father. Titto is currently fed liquid food through a tube.

Thomas recalled how he had managed to enrol his son in a BSc Nursing course in Mangalapuram with earnings from rubber tapping, adding that Titto had always been deeply passionate about caring for patients.