Stand by Nihal

Meet Nihal Hingst, lovingly known to everyone as Bittu. 

Bittu is 36, married to Candy and they have two beautiful daughters, Athena (10) and Kesha(6). On 29 October, Bittu was out for a leisure ride with his friends when his bike skid and he fell in a rocky area. He was rushed to the closest hospital where doctors confirmed that he had fractures in his C3, C4, C5, right hand index finger, right knee, and right leg. He also has severe abrasions from the fall and has broken multiple ribs on the right side of his body. Trauma to his lungs is another concern. 

On 31 October, Bittu went through a nine-hour long surgery and the doctors are very pleased with how the surgery went. When they initiated the process to get him out of the sedation, his response concerned them, and we learnt he has a brain contusion. 

The doctors performed a tracheotomy to improve his breathing and we are seeing small signs of hope. Health insurance is mandatory, and it was assumed that the ghastly accident was the last of our issues and that this would be covered - this is where our troubles have started. 

 Nihal's accident, shared by his wife.
 
My name is Candida Rachel and I am writing on behalf of my husband, Nihal Hingst who is currently in a critical condition at the hospital, fighting for his life. 

Nihal Hingst met with an accident at 8:57 am on Friday, 29 October and I was notified through an SMS sent from his Apple watch after which I called everyone possible to know the exact details. He was in a state of semi-consciousness and his friends and onlookers helped to keep him steady until the ambulance and police arrived. The ambulance took about 45 mins to find them after which he was rushed to where he reached by 10:15 am and they confirmed by 10:45 he had the immediate following injuries.

- fractures of C3, C4, C5
- fracture right-hand index finger
- fracture of right knee
- fracture of right lower leg

When I reached by 10:45 am, he was still in the emergency and the hospital staff were screaming for him to respond. I also noticed that he was struggling to breathe but I was not informed of any chest trauma. 

By 11:30 am, after reviewing his CT scan, the orthopedic doctor gave us the first update stating the extent of his injuries and explaining he will need surgery. He said they can do the surgery for the leg but they don’t have the capabilities to address his neck surgery. So we asked if we should inquire about shifting him to and alternative hospital however, were on hold on a call for 30 minutes. While we were trying to figure out a space for another hospital, the neurosurgeon gave us the first report saying he will not need cervical surgery and that conservative treatment will be enough. However, the orthopedic met me again and said he definitely needs cervical surgery IMMEDIATELY as his condition is very CRITICAL. 

By this time they also had to give him two units of blood due to the blood loss from his injuries. 

The alternative hospital informed us that we needed to send them the hospital report, x-rays and whatever documents we have so they can assess him being moved. We only got the report from the hospital at 2:00 pm and we sent it to this hospital. Again, the phone lines were not answered and we were kept waiting for 30 mins every time we called. 

The alternative hospital only called us back by 5 pm and even then they kept asking for more reports which we were told will take a few hours to prepare. It is very unfortunate that this hospital was taking their own time to respond when the situation called for expeditious actions. Given the situation Nihal was in, I had to take a call to ensure his best care and to save his life at the time and the constant waiting at this alternative hospital was only making things worse. 

We then started calling private hospitals and he was accepted for space in the second hospital and we connected the doctors from both the hospitals so they could agree if he can be moved in his critical condition. The doctors agreed he MUST be moved to do the life-saving surgeries he needed and that the ambulance needs to come prepared with hard braces for his neck injuries.  

By now the hospital gave us the final report and I was shocked to read that he will need life-saving surgery on his neck and that he is unstable and critical. The ambulance from another hospital arrived at 8 pm and he was transferred to the ambulance by 8:30 pm and we arrived at the hospital by 9:30 pm. The next day after several tests and x-rays, the hospital informed me that he also has chest trauma which the first hospital did not capture in any of the reports and caused a delay of over 24 hours in it being identified. At this point, his chest injuries started to get worse and his lungs started to fill up with fluid. They placed drains and intubated him for his surgery on 31 October. His surgery lasted 9+ hours where doctors did a cervical fixation from C2 to C6 to stabilize his spine.

My husband developed pneumonia of the chest and abdomen and they had to do a tracheostomy to further manage his breathing. He currently remains at ventilator support and continues to be CRITICAL in the SICU. 

His medical insurance is saying that they do not cover road accidents. Even the motor insurance company has declined stating that medical insurance should cover since it is an emergency case. However in this case, my husband, the rider skid and fell and the accident did not involve a third party. 

We are a young family with two daughters (10 and 6 years) and while these moments are precious that requires me to be at the hospital at all times, here I am running from pillar to post trying to seek justice. Apart from acute financial distress I am being subjected to severe mental trauma. The last 11 days I have been struggling between my husband fighting for his life and running around requesting the insurance company for support. The hospital bills are increasing every day and the billing department keep chasing me for payments and I have nowhere to go. My Husbands employer, friends and relatives have done their part and it is now time that the health insurance company do theirs in an expeditious manner. 

We are currently sitting with a bill of close to GBP 81,179 and only looking at the bill increasing since he will be in the hospital for a while. I have exhausted all my savings, sold my jewelry and his friends financial support and I have only managed to cover 20% of the bill. While there is hope on the horizon for his recovery, it is a long road ahead for us and I am reaching out to anyone in any part of the world who can help me look after my husband as he recovers and ensure that our daughters do not live a disrupted life. 

Since the insurance is not willing to cover this case, I need to raise the funds required as it won’t just stop at the hospital, he will require some serious rehabilitation, physiotherapy and care once he comes home. 

I truly appreciate your support.