Funds for Shawn Hill's Recovery

On his way home in late August, our friend Shawn Hill suffered a significant head injury. Doctors determined he had fractured his skull with resultant bleeding and bruising on the brain. After rallying for a couple of days, he fell into a coma and was returned to the hospital ICU where his condition started to deteriorate. The doctors discovered that he had endured several seizures and two strokes. After becoming concerned about the swelling in his brain, it was decided that the best course of action was surgery. Shawn has had a craniectomy, a procedure where part of the skull is removed to allow room for his brain to swell safely. The surgery went well and Shawn is recovering in the ICU, but still in critical condition. For a few days, Shawn was heavily sedated and in a medically induced coma, but his medical team has been slowly lowering his level of sedation to assess where he is at neurologically. He is responding to these treatments and underwent a tracheostomy to make him more comfortable and better able to communicate.

At this point, we are not sure what the future holds for Shawn. He is reacting well to the various procedures but has a long road of recovery ahead of him. Brain injuries are fraught with setbacks and are slow to regain a plateau of normalcy. It’s expected that Shawn may see numerous months of difficulty ahead, as the recovery from traumatic brain injuries is measured well over a year.

Many of Shawn’s family and friends—including co-workers at The Manx Pub and the many musicians Shawn has played with—have been asking how they can help out. Because he is not able to work during his long recuperation, his partner Melissa and son Levi will meet with significant financial challenges. Melissa has also not been able to work as she visits Shawn and takes care of Levi on her own. We are hoping the funds raised through this campaign will alleviate the anxieties brought about by this unfortunate accident. If you have any questions regarding this campaign, please ask. Thanks for your support. David O’Meara