‘She’s still in a fight.’ Central Coast woman battles coronavirus after husband recovers

The battle goes on for COVID-19 patient Melissa Meza as her husband wages a one-man campaign to encourage recovered patients to consider donating plasma to help others win their own war.

Santa Maria Valley resident Louis Meza and his wife were among Santa Barbara County’s earliest patients confirmed to have COVID-19, landing both in Marian Regional Medical Center.

On the same day Louis Meza was released, his wife was admitted and immediately put on a ventilator because of her declining condition.

Melissa Meza, who works for Mechanics Bank operations center in Santa Maria, has remained hospitalized for the past three weeks.

“She’s doing a lot better,” he said, adding that she has opened her eyes and been responsive, including when medical staff talk to her remotely via a tablet. “She’s still in a fight. She’s going to have a lot of recovering.”

Last weekend, she was transported to an out-of-county hospital for specialized treatment called extra corporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) that has shown promising results for COVID-19 patients.

ECMO has been likened to the heart-lung bypass machine used in open-heart surgery. The device pumps and oxygenates a patient’s blood outside the body, allowing the heart and lungs to rest.

“Our Easter miracle — a bed opened up, a machine opened up and they had transportation ready in two hours,” Louis Meza said.

Her pulmonologist, Dr. Baljinder Sidhu, rode in the ambulance as she was taken to the Santa Monica hospital.

Days after her transfer, Louis and Melissa Meza, both in their 40s, marked their 24th wedding anniversary.

“I want to thank everybody for the prayers, and please continue to pray for her,” he said.

Melissa Meza also received plasma, reportedly from Ventura County’s first COVID-19 patient, leading to a phone conversation between Louis Meza and the donor, Dwight Everett.

While continuing his own recovery and checking on his wife’s condition, Louis Meza, who works at The Hitching Post in Casmalia, has eagerly told their story with a mission to encourage people to continue social distancing, hand-washing and other measures.

He also has encouraged others who recovered from COVID-19 to contact blood banks about donating plasma when it’s safe.

“We have a lot of sick people out there that need this,” he said, continuing his push to end the stigma. “It’s not shameful that you had it.”

He is awaiting results to determine when he can donate.

“As soon as I find out I can, I’m going to go give blood,” Meza said. “I can’t wait until that day.”

A GoFundMe page to help the Mezas had raised more than $30,700 midday Monday.