BROADCASTER and doctor Ciara Kelly is suffering from the coronavirus, she revealed today.

The GP has been in self-isolation since the weekend and was among 69 new cases diagnosed in Ireland yesterday.

“For me, it felt like a bad flu, I had a sore throat, and a tightness and burning in my chest.

“I was a bit short of breath. And I was very tired, a bit dizzy and a bit wobbly when I stood up,” Dr Kelly said.

“I guessed I had it, as I am very rarely ever sick. Particularly the burning that I was having in my chest and in my respiratory tract was something I'd never had before, so I got a test on Sunday.”

She got the result of her test about an hour before Taoiseach Leo Varadkar’s address to the nation last night, which she described as being like something from a war movie.

But she said Mr Vardakar’s words gave her “some solace and some succour that we are in safe hands and all in it together”.

Describing the process of getting the test, Dr Kelly told listeners to her lunchtime programme on Newstalk: “A lovely paramedic came in full gear to my house and swabbed my throat and my nose. And last night, I was informed that I have Covid-19. I have coronavirus.

“I haven't seen anyone outside my family since I got the symptoms and I'm very hopeful that I haven't passed it on to other people. But I can't tell for sure.”

She apologised to anybody that she may have unwittingly passed the virus onto.

“And, for as long as I am able guys, I am going to stay on air with you because I think it is important.”

The ‘Sunday Independent’ columnist added: “Radio connects people and it makes us feel, at a time like this, that we are all in it together. We really are because I have it, and I'm dealing with it.

"I know it's different for different people. And in my case it's like a very bad flu, but myself and my family we are in quarantine now. It has calmed down a little bit closer to home for me.

“At the start of all of this, this was something I was reading about like yourselves, I was reading the newspapers and I saw it on the news.

“Now it’s inside my home. This may impact the rest of my family too. But I am still here, and I am not going to let it stop me from working or from broadcasting or from talking about what we can and should do to get through this.”

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Dr Kelly said that once she recovers her plan is to return to practising as a doctor.

“I'm going to put my stethoscope back on in some manner or form. I'm going to find out what I can do that would be useful,” she said.

“But for now, I'm just here in the hot press. This is what I can do at the minute and I will continue to do it. And I will continue to talk to you about how you're getting through this. And I'll tell you how I'm getting through it and I want to thank all of you for your support.”

Dr Kelly had been promoting her ‘100 Days of Walking’ challenge, but said she was sorry she would not be able to complete it this year.

“Truthfully, I'm very sorry about the walking. I never expected to falter at that. I will come back to it as soon as I can, but for now you guys are going have to go on ahead without me. My legs are a bit wobbly at the moment, to be honest, but my determination is still very strong around all of this.

“So what I want to say to you all today is ‘Yes, I have coronavirus and I am home on a laptop and in a hot press because of it - but you guys stay safe, stay home and stop the spread as much as you can.”

Dr Kelly urged people to engage in social distancing, handwashing and self-isolation.

She is not the first well-known broadcaster to move into self-isolation amid fears over Covid-19.

RTÉ'S Claire Byrne hosted her Monday night television programme from her garden shed, telling viewers she was awaiting a test for the virus.

"According to the HSE guidelines, you need to self isolate when you have the symptoms of a cold. So that's what we are doing," she said.

However, she added: "Rest assured, I'm feeling quite well. We're just being cautious. We're being careful. I will be in compliance with the HSE guidelines because, let's face it, the last thing I want to do is to put my colleagues or indeed our guests at risk if I do happen to have the coronavirus."

One of her guests on 'Claire Byrne Live' was Health Minster Simon Harris, who thanked the presenter for "leading by example"

Online Editors