After nearly six months in the hospital, 47-year-old COVID survivor returns home to his family.

Nearly six months after he was first admitted to the hospital for COVID-19 recovery, 47-year-old Chad Hardee finally returned home to his wife and three kids. Chad spent weeks in a medically induced coma and spent time at four different healthcare facilities recovering from the virus. Chad experienced a number of medical complications from the virus, including pneumonia and two small strokes. His final hospital stay was at Tidelands Health Rehabilitation Hospital where he participated in intensive therapy to learn to walk again.

Doctors, family and friends say that Chad’s recovery is nothing short of a miracle. In an interview with The Sun News, Dr. Lisa Smaldone, medical director of Tidelands Health Rehabilitation Hospital, says “Having a patient like Chad just renews your hope that not all is lost and that what we do really does make a difference.”

Chad will continue therapy and doctor’s visits, and it could be a year until he is fully recovered. But Chad says that he is excited to get back to the things he loves most, including cooking and playing with his daughter, Ava.

Learn more about Chad’s story at The Sun News, and in a video interview with WBTW: Horry County COVID-19 survivor released from hospital after months on a ventilator.