Nurse in coma for two weeks fighting for life after patient coughed on him

Doctors hope to start taking Russell Marsh off the machines soon. Photo / GofundMe

A nurse is fighting for his life after a patient coughed on him.

Doctors have no idea what is wrong with Russell Marsh who complained of a fever on Valentine's Day, two days after he was coughed on. Five days later he was in a coma.

Two weeks later, the father of one remains on life-support and is on dialysis after suffering acute respiratory failure.

The family has been told Marsh could have pneumonia, but doctors said they might never know what caused his decline.

The father-of-one (pictured with son Ronan, nine) was on life support following the cough. Photo / GofundMe

Yesterday, his wife Helen told Nine News doctors were starting to wean him off the machines to see if they had eased his recovery.

"He just went downhill so quickly," she said.

"They are starting to slow that machine down just to see how his body starts to react. They can't leave him on the machine long term.

"He is on a dialysis machine also, so they will start to remove him from that machine too to see if his kidneys start to function. If not, then they will put him back on."

Attempts to culture the virus had so far failed.

"Every time we visit him we need to be gowned up, so he is in isolation, basically."

His wife said she and her son are reeling from how quickly their lives have been turned upside down. Photo / GofuneMe

Sister-in-law Jasmine Nguyen said the family is worried about the long-term impact of the mysterious illness.

"We are praying he makes it through this, and although he may suffer ongoing neurological issues and require ongoing mobility rehabilitation, we all want him to recover and be able to spend many more precious years with his wife and son who mean the world to him," she said.

A fundraising page has been set up to cover the costs of Marsh's recovery and more than $17,000 has been raised so far.