What happens when a doctor gets COVID-19? He becomes a patient at his clinic

Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in March, Kurt Schwieters ’88 has been doing his best to spread timely and factual information about the virus to both his patients and a wider audience beyond.

Through his Facebook group – “Dr. Kurt: A Reliable COVID-19 Update” – the Melrose, Minnesota resident and family medical doctor with CentraCare has posted updated information, advice for coping with the stress the pandemic has created, and links to valuable resources.

That’s all in addition to an ongoing series of Facebook Live chats in which he interacts with his viewers and answers their questions. The group has grown to well over 2,600 members over the past six months.

So if anyone is familiar with the symptoms of a possible infection, it’s Schwieters. And driving home during the afternoon of Sept. 4, he began to experience them himself.

“I got home and was eating dinner and I told (his wife) Mary (a 1988 CSB graduate) that I thought I was getting sick,” he recalls. “And then the chills and shakes and sweats started. I set my alarm for 6 in the morning so I could get up and call CentraCare. But that night, I was up every hour anyway changing clothes because I was sweating so much. So I knew immediately that it was probably COVID.

“And the next morning, I was in my own clinic as a patient getting tested.”

The test came back positive, as did the test results for another member of his household. So all three members began their recommended periods of isolation while taking steps to inform others whom they may have been in contact with over the previous two weeks.

“Aside from work, I’d only gone two other places,” Schwieters said. “But I had to call the lady who cuts my hair and the local yoga studio to tell them I was sick, I’d gotten tested and I might have COVID.

“Those aren’t always easy calls to make because no one wants to feel like they’ve done someone else harm, even unintentionally. But the people I talked to were so grateful to have that information.”

Family members also completed a survey from the Minnesota Department of Health.

“If I have one message to convey it’s that it’s so important to take part in that survey,” he said. “That’s a big part of how we’re going to decrease the spread.

“Just being aware of your activities and keeping track of where you’ve been is key. Remembering them and writing them down helps a lot in case you need to know them later.”

Schwieters also chose to make his diagnosis public, sharing it with the audience he has built up on social media.

“Sometimes it takes something happening to someone we know to really make it real,” he said. “There’s so much uncertainty out there right now. And if I can impact just my little footprint, then I’m making a difference.”

Though Schwieters has spent a lot of time talking about the virus since March, even he was surprised by the impact it had on him.

“I never miss work,” he said. “I’m like a farmer that way. In 30 years as a doctor, before this, I think I’d missed less than seven days due to illness. So to miss 11 days in a row is a big deal. And on all 11 of those days, I was as sick or sicker than any of those previous seven.

“What shook me the most is that I thought I’d still be able to function. But especially on days 3, 4 and 5, I wasn’t able to do hardly anything because of the malaise and just being out of breath. My internal energy level sunk really low. I was out of gas.”

Schwieters said he and the rest of his household had been doing everything right – wearing a mask, socially distancing and avoiding large gatherings.

“But that’s the nature of infectious diseases,” he said. “We’re not in control of the virus. Sometimes you can take all the precautions and it doesn’t matter.”

Just how and where he contracted the virus remains a mystery.

“But that’s OK,” he said. “It’s really an acknowledgement that we’re all susceptible.”

After completing his recommended period of isolation, Schwieters was able to return to work on Sept. 16. He is still feeling more rundown than usual, but said he is getting better every day.

And he is grateful for the support he and his family have received.

“People have been so kind,” he said. “I can’t express how grateful we are. It’s hard for me to comprehend sometimes that people would even pay attention to me, or care about the things I say.

“So to have so many people reach out and be supportive has really meant a lot.”