Gutted not the way to start 2010

[BIG"E"]

I have just received the following e-mail, from my brother, whose son Philip is a student learning spanish in Mexico.

To some of you this may be the 1st you have heard so I am sorry if you are shocked.
What we know is that somehow Philip fell from a balcony (presumably) while celebrating News Years Eve.
He is currently in Sharp Hospital Mazatlan, Mexico and is in or going into ICU for a few days to be kept under sedation.
The doctor told me that he has complicated fractures to both legs and that they needed to operate immediately.
It is not thought (at this time) he has a head injury.
The doctor has also mentioned that Philip is in GREAT shock and that there is damage to his spine.
After he has spent sometime in ICU it is intended to explore this injury and repair as necessary.
Obviously with the language difficulties these facts my be incorrect.
The insurance company are in contact with the hospital and are attempting to gain more information about the accident, the injuries and if he will be flown home sooner or after another operation.

If I have any other news I will send another email.

Since receiving this devastating news I have learnt that he fell from the 7th floor


I cant believe this, what a start to 2010.



Time for a prayer, it might help.

[LollyMccray]

So sorry to hear this, our thoughts are with you, please keep us posted x

[666subaru]

Ian,

I think we speak for all of us when we say our thoughts and best wishes for you and your family in this very difficult time, you know where we are buddy if you need to talk, you were there for us.

Take care mate.

Baz and Shaz

[SUBARMAN]

Sad news Ian. Thoughts are with you.

So sorry to hear this Ian, our thoughts and best wishes to you and your family.

[Cath]

Not a good start at all matey
I assuming he was very drunk, I heard alot of people that have accidents like this,
come out of them better than if you were sober, so lets hoping he makes a full recovery

[Steve_PPP]

hope he makes a full recovery, our thoughts are with you.

[Kei Man]

Thoughts are with you and your family. Sad news, hope it is not as serious as the initial report.

[scatz]

You don't know me and I don't know you but none the less, my thoughts are with you and your family at this time. Not a very good start to the year at all and especially being so far away from home also

[BIG"E"]

The latest is :
He is and will remain in a very critical condition for some days.
The medical team have operated on his legs to stop the bleeding but he also has multiply lower body bone breaks and internal bleeding.
His biggest problem is the massive shock and for this reason is being heavily sedated. The doctor wants to operate on his back but until his condition stabilizes can not begin to treat this other major concern.
There may well be updates on his condition in the Daily Express or on their website both here and in Mexico. One problem the hospital face is securing enough blood type O neg.
Thank you for all the kind words sent and we all pray that he will survive this extremely serious accident.

One glimmer of hope is that he was apparently moving his legs slightly on arrival at the Sharp Hospital and the team do not believe he has any brain damage.

[AndyWRX]

7th floor omg, hope he makes a full recovery mate it could of been alot worse

**** mate that is just awful, grim news indeed.
Just praying he makes a full recovery.
My thoughts are with you mate

[Chunk]

Thoughts are with you and your family. Hope he makes a full and speedy recovery

[Scott.T]

Thoughts are with you Ian and with all the close family.
It's not nice having a stomach bug oversea's so I can't imagine how a family can deal with this sort of thing.
Gives us a call if you need anything.

[Scooby Wez]

Hope he makes a full recovery.
My thoughts are with you mate.

[Greig]

Sorry to hear this, Hope he makes a full recovery.

[majorscooby]

Sad news, thoughts go out to him and your family! hes in good hands

[BIG"E"]

The Sunday Express is now involved,

http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/...ave-ill-nephew


He needs blood desperately.

[BIG"E"]

The latest is:
Things are looking slightly better, Philip did fall from the 7th floor, but we have just found out that he landed on another balcony below on the 5th floor.
his injuries he sustained are obviously still very bad. We still have no idea how this accident occurred.
It looks as if he is going to have at least one of his legs amputated below the knee (I think).
They are still not sure what is the extent of the injuries to his back, and he still is in a very bad way, with some of his internal organs and broken pelvis.

The shortage of blood looks as if its improving owing to superb work my niece and her friends are doing on Facebook
http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/g...d=233782466265

and the appeal on today's BBCs Southeast Today News.

So if anyone knows any one in Mexico that could donate O negative blood please go onto Facebook and read the info there.


Thank you everyone for your kind comments and support.

[The Gimp]

Holy Jesus!!

I read this story on Sunday morning via the BBC News website. I thought poor bugger. But now after reading this and having meet you a few times I have a a feel of sadness.

I really hope he pulls through mate I really do.

If it helps I am O RH Positive however I am in the UK. If there is anything I can do to help please let me know.


Best Wishes

Steve

[BIG"E"]

This is the latest news.
I have just received the following email from my brother.


We arrived to Mazatlan at about 12.30 am this morning having been to see Philip who looks remarkable well for someone so very ill we eventually got to our hotel at about 0230.
We got back to the hospital at about 9am this morning and meet with the team that are looking after him today.
The concern at the moment is that his blood is of such poor quality that it is not helping his body to get the essential things it needs.
He has a type of dialysis system coming from his stomach as he is not well enough for the full treatment.
His Kidneys are unfortunately not working properly - hence we still need blood.
The hospital is receiving many calls from donors but unfortunately most here are American and Canadian ex pats and either elderly or on medication.
We are hopeful that with all the appeals going out tomorrow will be a good day for blood. We have guaranteed that 10 - 12 pints is being flown in from Florida.
There is a big baseball game here tonight and we are expecting a good result from the appeal being made there and on local TV / Radio.
As for Philip - he is or has been in surgery today in an attempt to facilitate a better blood supply to his left leg.
If there are unable to correct this situation unfortunately he will loose this leg from the knee. But in exchange for life we feel it is a good option.
The team here today have given us more hope but he's condition is stabilizing but he still has a small chance of recovery.

The insurance company have at long last said they will cover the expense subject to Philips alcohol blood test. The doctor says that there is no way this test will prevent him being covered.
As for the accident, he fell from the 7th floor onto a boiler house so effectively fell 5 floors.
Today ; Philip has undergone a 4/5 hour surgery to try and save his right leg. Briefly his blood supply to his feet was non existent so they have cleaned the arteries and repaired them. They have also placed metal rods in his lower leg. The results of today's surgery will not be known for 24 / 48 hours. But already there are signs that the circulation has improved. The doctors have commented that his condition has improved but that he is still incredible ill. One of the doctors has said that people with the amount of injuries Philip has would normally be dead. As for the blood things are in place and tomorrow we are expecting a lot of donors to attend the hospital through the various appeals going out.
The damage to his lungs has improved dramatically but his kidneys are still giving the doctors a lot of concern. The damage to his spine will not be looked at until his is a lot better. The treatment being given to his blood appears to be very slowly cleaning it.
I will try and give another update tomorrow. Both Sally and I are still exhausted but since having arrived feel that he is good hands and that there is a chance he may pull through.
Hopefully in a couple of days he may stabilize enough to be either receive more surgery or be flown back to the UK.

Once again thanks all for your help and kind words.



Apparently my Niece is being interviewed today by the BBC. and will probably be on the South East Today programme.

Ian
There is some promising news there mate.
Very early days i know, but lets all hope he continues to make steady progress.

[BIG"E"]

Originally Posted by Crowman

Ian
There is some promising news there mate.
Very early days i know, but lets all hope he continues to make steady progress.

Yes mate.
Things look slightly more promising but there's a very long way to go yet.


Thanks everyone for your kind comments.

Some of the latest news can be found here:

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gi...4338759&ref=mf

[darth maul]

So sorry to here this me and becks hopes he makes a good recovery

Ian,

Can't add anymore to whats been said above.

Our thoughts are with Philip and the rest of the family.

[2-jaffacake-tone]

omg only just seen this sorry to here about this ian hope he makes a full recovery

[BIG"E"]

Its on tonights BBC & Meridian news.

Also again tommorrow on ITN.

[Scott.T]

Saw it on South East Today.
Couldn't beleive how much your brother on the phone link fom Mexico sounded like you 'E'.
Lets keep em' crossed.

I saw that and thought the same.

[Ratboy]

Very shocking news
Fingers crossed he pulls through ok.

[Lucky]

Only just seen this Ian, I really hope everything works out and he's ok.

[scoobycoops]

That's terrible news.
I hope all goes well. Best wishes and you guys are in my thoughts..

More positive on the news this evening, lets hope he's able to be moved to a specialist hospital asap.

[BIG"E"]

Originally Posted by MrX???

More positive on the news this evening, lets hope he's able to be moved to a specialist hospital asap.

From what my brother says he is in the right place.
He says that he has every confidence in the staff there.
Things are looking better by the day although its not expected he will leave there for at least a month.

I have just recieved this email with the latest update from my brother:

Things continue to improve for Philip although it is very slow.
Here is the latest on all his problems.
Heart ; continues to improve the medication is being reduced.
Lungs ; the drain has been removed and the function is continuing to improve.
Oxygen levels in the blood ; good.
Kidneys ; still causing concern - he will have more dialysis today and the doctors remain hopeful that they will improve. During his dialysis today they intend to give him a unit of blood.
Today he has begun to receive food via a tube.
Head / brain ; are not causing concern - the neuro surgeon said that he did have a slight hemorrhage but this has gone. He is hopeful that Philip has not damaged his brain.
Spine ; This injury is yet to be examined (planned for the weekend) but again the neuro surgeon is hopeful that any damage to his nervous system will be minimal because of how low in the back the break is.
R leg ; 2 days ago they were concerned about the whole leg. Now the only concern is for the toes, so if this situation doesn't improve they will only amputate half of his foot.
L leg ; tomorrow he goes to surgery to have the bone damage repaired.
Pelvis ; although broken no treatment is necessary as it will heal itself.
Today Sally and I have visited the Hotel and although there are conflicting reports as to which floor he fell from. The facts remain that the only explanation is that having been in bed asleep for about 45 mins, he got up left the room and then fell from the balcony. Those of you that know him well will know that he is prone to both sleep talk and sleep walk.
It is clear that after the fall he was still conscious and remained so until after his arrival to the hospital.
I have spoken to the staff here today and have been told that they do not expect him to be well enough to move for about a month.
As yet we still await to see if the insurance company will cover his treatment, but hope that this situation will be clarified tomorrow, or soon after.
From what we have seen here we are very happy with all the treatments he is receiving and remain confident that he will recover, to a near normal condition.

Lastly we thank you all for your continuing support.

Some very encouraging news there mate.
Going to be a slow process but at least he is improving

[BIG"E"]

Here's the latest news fingers crossed.


Another good day.
As regular readers will remember, today Philip was to have the operation to correct the bone damage to his left leg and possibly loose the toes of his right foot.
It would appear that the 'Wiggle em or loose em' campaign is working so keep it up.
His toes have shown signs of improvement so the only one now in danger is his big toe and possibly his little one (the one that cried all the way home).
Because of this improvement today's operation was postponed until tomorrow to save him having to have possibly an additional surgery.
All the drugs to keep his organs going have been withdrawn apart from the kidneys that are being somewhat stubborn to start working again. But again there are signs that they are beginning to remember what they should be doing.(basically - they have been clogged up with debris)
They are gradually reducing his coma inducing drugs and will soon encourage him to breath on his own for a short periods, in readiness for when he comes off the ventilator.
I'm guessing that because of today's delay his spine operation will also be moved back to Monday but as yet we have not heard that this will be the case. The doctors are now keen to revive him as soon as they can.
We continue to be inundated with offers of blood and kindness and are very humbled by this.
Philip appearance gets better each day but we have his mirror and tweezers ready for the big day so he can once again pluck out his mono brow.
Joking aside he remains in a critical condition but we now feel confident that his life has been saved and pray that when the time arrives he will be able to walk unaided but obviously with his back injury this is not a certainty.
We have just seen him and all looks good apart from his toes.

N & S

[AndyWRX]

Excellent news mate, hes obviously a fighter hope he continues to get better

[BIG"E"]

Just letting you know the latest terrible news.

I have just received this update from my brother.:

You will probably realise by the lack of news over the last few days, that it has been very traumatic for us.

The news on Philip is not good.
Philip remains in an almost coma like condition but is no longer on any drugs to keep him in this state.
The test on his brain yesterday revealed that only 50% is healthy.
They are intending to carry out another scan today and a follow up test next week to see if there is any improvement.
The doctors have given us no reason to believe that his condition will improve and if it does it will take a very long time.
We are now weighing up the options of which hospital he remains in and how soon we can fly him back to the UK.
One good thing was that from yesterday morning to yesterday evening there was a slight improvement with his eye movement.
The doctors believe that his kidneys are now almost functioning normally.
He will tracheotomy today and then be put on a more normal ward soon.
They still need to carry out operations on his legs but this can be done when he is back to the UK.

Trouble is what can you say??
Except we are praying for a miracle.

[Skullfudge]

I am really sorry having just read your thread Big E.

Wishing all concerned the very best.


Clive

[Chunk]

At least there are signs of improvement

Hopefully things will be clearer when he can come back to the UK & into a UK hospital

[Jolly Green Monster]

holly cow.... just noticed this and read the thread..

Hope he improves!

Simon

[BIG"E"]

Thank You.

[MonkeyBoy]

Am pretty sure i saw on the news tonight that he is now out of a coma and looking brighter, hope im right.....fingers crossed.

Dave

Originally Posted by MonkeyBoy

Am pretty sure i saw on the news tonight that he is now out of a coma and looking brighter, hope im right.....fingers crossed.

Dave

Hope this news is correct

[Chunk]

Fingers crossed the news is correct

Any update Big?

[scatz]

Fingers crossed

[BIG"E"]

Thanks peeps for your interest.
We have just heard that his has had to lose his big toe, due to poor blood circulation. Amazingly Philip seems to be making steady progress, his brain is obviously is not as damaged to the extent that we were told a while ago.
Here is the latest email from my brother:
Just as we were about to sit down to eat last night at about 9pm we got the call that we had been dreading since arriving in Mexico.
It was the hospital telling us that we needed to come to the hospital ASAP as Philip needed us. We left immediately, leaving the lobster thermadore, to go cold. On arrival at the hospital we were told that he was unwilling to go to surgery. After a few minutes of reassurance, he agreed to have his right leg cleaned. An hour later he returned to the room and we set him down for the night. This morning while getting ready to leave for the hospital it happened again - 'Philip wants to talk to you' we quickly get ready and rushed to the hospital. I entered his room and asked 'What's the matter Phil ?' He casually replied 'I'm bored' - I could have hugged him I was so happy - but us British are made of sterner stuff than that - Aren't we ? Today there is again some improvement and he has enjoyed listening and doing his best to talk with friends and relatives using SKYPE. At this moment he is having a long session of physio therapy and appears to be doing well. Mum has giving him a haircut and a beard trim so he looks more like him old self. After Physio he knows we have some spit chicken waiting for him, so I won't be surprised that in a few seconds the nurse will be thrown out and Phil will demand his scoff. All in all today has been great.

[chris wrx]

Thats great news E

[Jolly Green Monster]

That is fantastic news!

[SUBARMAN]

Good news !