Quadriplegic

A young undocumented Mexican national injured in a car accident was rushed to the hospital. Although his spine was severed, the medical team was able to save him.  He was left a quadriplegic and could not move from the neck down. Unfortunately, the hospital was not able to provide the amount of rehabilitative care that was recommended by their own medical staff, and no other medical facility would accept him without insurance. The hospital was left to bear the significant financial costs of care alone for years on end.

He had a large loving family willing to care for him back home in Mexico. They even identified a nearby social security hospital that could provide the care he needed for free. But their lack of funds prohibited them from being able to visit the U.S. or bring him home to receive the care he needed. The patient felt trapped not only in his body, but also in his room, in a foreign country, with no family, and few visitors.

The hospital pursued the option of medical repatriation to assist in getting the young man a passport from the Mexican Consulate, conduct the due diligence on the receiving hospital, identify proper medical transport, and coordinate with the Mexican family, consulate, and foreign medical team in Spanish. Due to medical repatriation, the young man returned home, received needed care from competent providers, and is now with his loving family, speaking in his native Spanish, eating his favorite foods.

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He was a good candidate for Medical Repatriation.