DELIA'S STORY OF RECOVERY

When a terrifying car accident left 26-year-old Delia Swann in a coma, she wasn’t expected to survive. But world-class care at Addenbrooke’s gave her a second chance.

Her husband, Russell, says:

Delia in hospital “Delia’s future was entirely in the hands of the experts. All we could do was watch, wait and hope – trusting that they would be able to do the best they possibly could.

She had various scans to monitor her condition, two weeks of specialist cooling treatment to slow down the rate of cell damage in the brain and a raft of clinical trials. [Find out how charitable donations helped below.]

But when Delia remained in a deep coma after five weeks, hope began to give way to despair.

However, no two brain injuries are the same and the team’s painstaking work and exceptional dedication paid off.

Delia and Russell Gradually the Delia we all love started flickering back to life. At first it was eye movements, then a faint smile and one day she gave I promised to take her on a second honeymoon if she kept up the fight to get well. From talking to walking, Delia had to relearn absolutely everything.

Just three months after the accident we took her home and later that year she was well enough to go on that second honeymoon.

Supported by the fantastic Addenbrooke’s team, Delia made a truly miraculous recovery – we really couldn’t have asked for more.”

Russell Swann

To read Russell's full account of Delia's story please click here.

How donors make a difference for patients like Delia

Every year thousands of patients like Delia benefit from enhanced care thanks to the wonderful kindness of donors whose gifts fund all manner of extras too numerous to list here, but that would otherwise not be available.

Gifts to ACT – the independent charity for Addenbrooke's and the Rosie hospitals – are exclusively used to top-up standard NHS funding. Donations pay for extra equipment, research, refurbishment and amenities that directly enrich the quality of patient care but do not affect NHS entitlement in any way. Here are just a few examples related to Delia's experience.

>> State of the art scanning
Charitable gifts to ACT play a key role in the hospitals’ advanced CT and MRI scanning services that are crucial to fast, accurate patient diagnosis

>> Specialist equipment
ACT help provide additional equipment like the high tech cooling blankets used to greatly improve outcomes for head injury and cardiac arrest patients

>> Clinical trials
ACT regularly awards grants to support clinical trials and pioneering research into new treatments to help patients around the world.

Can we count on you to provide a vital lifeline?

When we can rely on regular funds, we can plan more effectively to make sure extra support is available when it is needed most – helping more patients to benefit from the very best care. So please could you set up a direct debit today?

Setting up a direct debit is easy and, with Gift Aid, anything you give will go even further to help more patients. Simply click here to make a donation.

Thank you