A terminally ill teen who was left in A&E for 14 hours before being rushed for emergency surgery then into intensive care has woken up after being in an induced coma for weeks.
Mark McAvoy from Partick, Glasgow was rushed to the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow on Monday, January 6, after he was struck with severe stomach pain and vomiting.
The 18-year-old, who suffers from Cerebral Palsy and Scoliosis, was told there were no beds available and placed in the hallway on a trolley as he writhed around in pain.
The following day, as Mark’s condition deteriorated, he was diagnosed with a stomach ulcer. He underwent a gruelling eight-hour operation before he was transferred to the intensive care unit and placed in an induced coma.
Three weeks after being in an induced coma Mark had a surgical procedure on January 24. The op created an opening in his neck to insert a tube into the windpipe called a tracheotomy, which was the family’s last hope to bring Mark out of his coma.
Mark’s mum, Leanne Reston, 43, confirmed he woke up from his coma on January 25 and has been getting stronger day-by-day.
Mark has also be able to get out of bed for the time in weeks and is sitting in a chair in hospital. He has been breathing on his own longer and longer each day starting at two hours during the weekend.
Leanne previously told the Recordmedical staff didn’t have the resources to properly care for Mark and believes her son would not have been in a coma if he had been treated when he arrived at the hospital.
The mum, from Partick, said: “I had phoned NHS 24 and they advised we should go to hospital, so I took him over in the car. I explained to the reception staff about his other conditions and that his health can deteriorate fast and they said they didn’t have any beds.
“They left him on that trolley in a corridor for 14 hours and his heart rate was racing up and down. I told nurses he had been on end-of-life care for the last two years, but no one seemed to take into account what was happening.
“I eventually ended up having to call get a nurse from the hospice we are supported by to come to the hospital and speak to the staff. “But if he had been seen quicker he might not be in a coma fighting for his life.”
NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde apologised to Mark’s family.
A spokesperson said: “As is the case throughout the country, all our services are under considerable pressure, and the arrival of winter has brought additional challenges. While we cannot comment on individual patient cases due to confidentiality, we would like to apologise to Mark and his family for the distress caused by any delay in treatment.”
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