Accident confines young man to hospital bed for 385 days

For the last 385 days, 26-year-old Moses Karonei, has spent his days tossing and turning in pain in a hospital bed.

Karonei was involved in a road accident near Kipsitet trading centre along the Kericho-Kisumu Road on December 15, 2016.

The Information Communication and Technology (ICT) graduate from Mt Kenya University was rushed to Siloam Hospital in Kericho and has not left the hospital since.

His only glimpse of the outside world is through the tiny window in Ward 9, which overlooks a tiny flower garden.

Evade pothole

Karonei, who comes from Tindiret Constituency in Nandi County recalls that it was about 5.30pm and that he was on his way home from Muhoroni Sugar, where he worked in the Information Technology Department when he was knocked down by a speeding saloon car.

The vehicle swerved to his side in an attempt to evade a pothole on the section of the road to the lakeside city, Kisumu but the damage had been done.

“Though I flashed the lights to the lady driver to warn her about the uneven road, she nonetheless swung to my lane and knocked me down. The accident happened so fast, I did not have time to react to save myself. I was brought to the hospital unconscious,” he says.

Dr Patson Kubuta, a resident doctor at the hospital, says Karonei was immediately taken to the theatre for extensive reconstructive surgery, which lasted for 13 hours.

“The patient had extensive tissue loss especially from the left elbow and the lower back, multiple deep lacerations on the head and face among other injuries,” he says.

The doctor adds that the past one year has seen Karonei taken to theatre for multiple surgical debridement due to multiple tissue necrosis and has been undergoing daily wound cleaning and dressing.

Karonei has also been on antibiotics and analgesics, and has to attend physiotherapy sessions.

“Cervical spine X-ray and CT scans showed a burst fracture of the C-5 with a spinal compression of the same segment, leading to paralysis of both upper and lower limbs.

Now he is unable to walk and has a wrist drop of the left hand,” says Dr Kubuta.

The doctor adds that the young patient requires treatment for plastic and reconstructive surgery, as well as a motorised wheel chair with specifications for spinal reconstruction.

But the situation currently looks grim for Karonei, since the hospital bill for his more than 12 months stay at the hospital has hit Sh4 million.

Multiple fundraisers organised by Karonei’s parents, relatives, friends and well-wishers have not raised even half of the amount owed to the private hospital.

“I come from a humble background. My father has even put on sale a portion of the family land but he is yet to get a buyer. I did not celebrate Christmas because of the health problems bedeviling me," he tells Sunday Standard when we visited him.

"I heard people had fun but the past two Christmases have found me stuck in this hospital. I am in pain and under heavy sedatives,” says Karonei.

The accident victim says positive thinking is what has kept him going during his hospitalisation.

Pursue degree

“I dream that one day I will walk out of this bed healed and pursue a masters degree in Information, Communication and Technology, so that I can get a better job and offset the huge debts my parents have incurred since my treatment started.

I would also like to get married and get children as any other man my age would do,” he says.

But for now Karonei is lost in pain and an uncertain future, not knowing when his family will have enough money to pay his growing hospital bill.

He even dares to hope that a well-wisher will come forward to help foot his medical bill.

“As I look through my hospital window and see happy people walking by, I pray that one day I will get healed and live life just like them,” he says.