Home » Derick Hougaard recovery: What happens next?
Derick Hougaard recovery: What happens next?
Derick Hougaard is making steady progress on his road to recovery, says his girlfriend, Nadine. In fact, the Afrikaans singer hopes her former Springboks player partner will be ready to leave the hospital soon. Earlier this month, Derick was found unresponsive in his Pretoria East home. He was rushed to the Steve Biko Academic Hospital, […]
Derick Hougaard is making steady progress on his road to recovery, says his girlfriend, Nadine. In fact, the Afrikaans singer hopes her former Springboks player partner will be ready to leave the hospital soon.
Earlier this month, Derick was found unresponsive in his Pretoria East home. He was rushed to the Steve Biko Academic Hospital, where he lay in a coma in the ICU for almost two weeks.
Derrick has since regained consciousness and resumed breathing without a ventilator.
Speaking to News24, Nadine claimed that Derick was desperate to leave the hospital after the hellish ordeal.
She said: “Derick is eager to come home and leave his hospital bed, but he is still in the ICU ward and is very weak because of everything that has happened. He can’t just get up and walk out. They’re still monitoring his oxygen and his vitals, but they are feeling positive.”
According to Nadine, Derrick will be moved to a high-care ward and then a normal one.
She continued: “As much as he wants to get up and leave, he physically can’t yet. I think it will be a few days still before he can leave.”
INSIDE HIS HELLISH HOSPITAL EXPERIENCE
Speaking to Jacaranda FM’s Martin Bester, Nadine recounted the “hellish” two weeks of Derick’s hospital experience. To date, the 40-year-old has spent close to three weeks in the state hospital.
The singer claimed that her partner narrowly missed being placed in a medically-induced coma, which occurs when a patient has been on a ventilator for more than two weeks.
Here’s how the hospital experience went…
First few days, Nadine was not sure he would make it
On day nine, his medical condition turned a corner
Day 12 -13, Derick began gradually waking up from a coma
On day 15, he was fully awake and began to talk, and attempted to walk.
On day 16, Derick came off the ventilator, which had been helping him to breathe.
Although Derick is in pain, Nadine added: “Every step he takes gets better.”
Nadine has given a detailed health update about Derick Hougaard’s hospital stay. Images via Facebook: @derickhougaard
According to Nadine, Derick was diagnosed with aspirational pneumonia; an infection doctors claim occurs when saliva, food, liquid, or vomit is inhaled or infiltrated into the lungs.
As a result, Derick suffered a collapsed left lung and a partial collapse of his right lung. Nadine added that Derick also experienced blood clots in his left arm and a lack of circulation in his left arm.
Derick was then medically treated with two sets of antibiotics. He underwent two bronchoscopies and was prone – to treatment to help relieve respiratory distress.
According to the NHS, some patients who wake up from a coma may fully recover, while others may be affected by a prolonged period of unconsciousness, which can affect brain functions. They may need physiotherapy, occupational therapy, and psychological assessment during their rehabilitation. Some may even require care for the rest of their lives.
