COVID ICU Patient Gets Married in Hospital: 'This Is Proof That Love Prevails'

A COVID-19 patient in Las Vegas hospital got married to his "longtime sweetheart" in an intensive care unit (ICU) this week.

According to MountainView Hospital, the patient, identified as Eddie D., 74, texted his now-wife Patricia M., 75, on Monday, and asked her to marry him.

"She was floored, and excited and amazed about how everyone jumped in to make it happen," the hospital wrote in a description of the marriage ceremony published on Wednesday.

The couple had previously been married in the 1970s.

"We were young and stupid," Patricia, a retired nurse, said, according to the hospital. "We divorced in a year but maintained contact over the years."

About five years ago, the couple got back together, moving in to the same home in 2017.

According to the hospital, Eddie, who spent 33 years in the military, was diagnosed with cancer in October of last year—three months after he had been told the disease was in remission. Later, he received a bacterial pneumonia infection, before getting COVID.

Due to COVID-19 protocols, Patricia hadn't been able to visit Eddie in the hospital. However, the hospital granted the couple special permission to have the in-person marriage ceremony.

During the wedding ceremony, hospital staff decorated Eddie's room with artificial flowers, and Patricia was given a bouquet of blue flowers to hold.

"A team of clinicians, from respiratory therapy, physical therapy, nurses and his physician worked to set Eddie up on the bed for the ceremony. Before they began, Chief of Medicine Dr. Jacqueline King combed Eddie's hair. Dr. King acted as the couple's witness on the paperwork," the hospital wrote.

The hospital posted a video of the couple's marriage ceremony on Twitter Thursday.

"The usual sounds in the ICU were broken by sounds of 'I Do' as a patient with COVID and his long-time sweetheart tied the knot," according to MountainView Hospital.

The video shows Eddie and Patricia saying their "I dos" in the hospital room with Eddie sitting on his bed and Patricia standing next to him holding the flowers.

The hospital said that the "ceremony was short, with onlookers from throughout the hospital at the ICU to join in."

"We hope this day was an unforgettable experience for Eddie and Patricia," MountainView Hospital CEO Julie Taylor said in a statement. "This is proof that love prevails, and that people are stronger together and that there are joyful moments amidst the challenges."

"It was our pleasure to celebrate with them and share in their joy," Taylor added.