A dream come true for a patient in ICU
Kobus Van Wyk was paralysed from his neck down during an accident. His desire to appreciate the little things in life again was a dream which came true in this week's Big Favour.
Listen to the podcast and read the story below:
I received a heartbreaking email from Lelani who told us about her school friend Kobus.
Kobus Van Wyk worked in the local pharmacy in Empangeni. He was delivering
medication in the community on Tuesday, 31 October 2017, when he was
involved in an accident which left him paralysed from the neck down.
He’s been in ICU at Netcare Umhlanga Hospital for the past 20 months. Kobus desperately misses his wife and boys, who are only able to visit him on weekends. Besides visits from his family, he has no contact with the outside world.
Kobus dreams of sitting in the sun or watching the waves - which are things that most of us take for granted, and he dreams of it daily.
His wish was to see the ocean, sit outside in the warm sun, watch the clouds, and feel the beach sand between his toes.
I contacted Belinda Lehnerdt, the Nursing Manager at Netcare Umhlanga Hospital, who rallied her team together to make Kobus’s dream come true.
Gary Paul, the Regional Operations Manager for Netcare 911, will provide an intensive care ambulance with ICU facilities together with advanced life support paramedics who will take Kobus to the beach to make his dream come true.
The state-of-the-art Netcare Umhlanga Hospital has a level 2 accredited trauma centre which can handle all trauma and medical emergencies promptly and efficiently, 24 hours a day.
The hospital is supported by a team of specialists, nursing professionals, and other healthcare professionals.
The 290-bed facility has a stroke centre of excellence, eight operating theatres, a cardiac catheterisation laboratory, and a specialised theatre for caesarean deliveries.
The Netcare 911 team of emergency care practitioners based at Umhlanga Hospital provide a 24-hour advanced life support service with a fleet of response cars, ambulances, and an ICU equipped helicopter that operates throughout KwaZulu-Natal.
