A mum who suffered a traumatic head injury after she was hit by a tractor while out running says she had to spend £10,000 on private therapy because NHS services shut down during the coronavirus pandemic.
Pamela Jack, 47, was out running with a friend on a country road near Lochwinnoch, Renfrewshire, when she was run down by the farm vehicle. Superfit Pamela, who ran the London Marathon in four hours in 2019, spent 17 days on a high dependency unit at Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow.
Doctors treated her for a "moderate-to-severe" brain injury, a fractured pelvis, six fractured rips, two left knee fractures, damaged teeth and temporary sight loss in one eye. She was left with two metal plates in her left hip and seven pins in her knee.
The October 2019 incident – for which the tractor driver is understood to have pleaded guilty to driving without due care and attention – left the runner learning to walk again. And to make matters worse, just as she was beginning her recovery, the pandemic struck, shutting down NHS services.
Pamela, from Houston, said: “I had the option of waiting for NHS services to reopen but I had no idea how long that would take during lockdown. I know how important the early days are for having a positive, lasting impact on my future recover so I was keen to do whatever was needed.
“No one was going to do the recovery for me. I knew I had to put in the work and I knew an early start was key.
"It’s my body, my brain injury and my life so I made my recovery my responsibility. So lockdown or not, I was determined.”
Pamela, who is mum to Lewis, nine, and Ross, seven, therefore turned to independent gyms, taxis and private specialists, hiring a personal trainer and getting access to a hydrotherapy tank to regain her mobility. For months, she used a Zimmer frame to get around the house, and relied on a walking stick for around two years.
In all, she estimates that she has spent £10,000 on her recovery – but says that the choice was to either splash out or risk gambling her health while waiting for NHS services to start up again. She hopes to recoup the costs in a future legal settlement.
She added: "I was a marathon runner, worked four days a week and was a hands-on mother to two young boys. The physical injuries were tough as I had to learn to walk again and that felt harder than running a marathon.
“But the brain injury is what changed my life as it impacts your emotions, personality, patience with others and leaves me fatigued – I also lost my driving license for a year until I was cleared to drive again.
"The total costs of sorting my own physio work came to about £10,000 - it will be deducted from a future legal settlement but I’d rather invest in my health now so I can stay an active wife and mum.
“But I’m lucky to be here and I am committed to working hard each day. I don’t want to waste time mourning my past when I could instead focus on a positive future.”
Her inspirational attitude to recovery has prompted an invitation to speak at the Head Injury Information Day event being held in Glasgow next week. The May 23 event is organised by legal firm Digby Brown Solicitors, which has supported Pamela during her intensive recovery.
Chris Stewart, partner at the firm, said: "When you consider the extent of Pamela’s injuries it makes it all the more remarkable when you consider the way she has responded to those injuries. If even one person feels inspired from hearing Pamela’s journey then maybe it can help create a more positive future for another family.”
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