A former law student who spent ten months in hospital after suffering a severe traumatic brain injury has completed a sponsored walk in aid of the service that saved her life.
Alice Wright has helped raise £2,800 for Wales Air Ambulance after clinicians attended her following a road traffic collision in Denbighshire in November 2022.
She was on a gap year from studying law when the incident occurred, resulting in her car hitting a tree and leaving her with life-changing injuries.
The 22-year-old said: “I cannot remember a thing about that day; I was knocked unconscious.”
An off-duty police officer was the first at the scene and dialled 999. Alice’s mum, Jennifer, said: “They flagged down a second car, which was being driven by an off-duty firefighter. He removed Alice from the car and started CPR.”
The Wales Air Ambulance Critical Care Team was immediately dispatched, joining the Welsh Ambulance Service, police, and the fire service.
When the medics arrived, they confirmed Alice’s heart was beating. They gave her oxygen and placed a drip in her arm to be able to give her medication.
She remained unconscious and had a pulse, but her breathing was very slow. The decision was made to immediately give her a general anaesthetic and intubate her.
Alice was placed on a stretcher, and a tight band was placed around her pelvis to keep it stable, just in case there were any internal injuries. Her legs were bandaged together to keep them in line and straight. Blocks were placed on either side of her head to keep her head, neck, and spine in alignment.
As there was potential for internal bleeding, she was also given medication via a drip in her arm to help stop this. A temperature probe and a small feeding tube were inserted into her nose.
The air ambulance clinicians inserted a line into her right wrist, which continually monitors blood pressure and allows the team and hospital to take blood more easily. Once stable, she was loaded into the aircraft and flown directly to the major trauma centre in Stoke.
Jennifer, who has recently been appointed Rector of Farleigh, Candover and Wield, said:
“Alice had to have an intracranial pressure bolt fitted to her skull to monitor her brain pressure.
“Her left side was badly impacted in the crash, so her body almost went into the foetal position in response.
“We were told that it’s the brain’s way of shutting down the body when it has suffered a traumatic injury like this.”
She added: “The medical teams were doing everything they could to help her. She had daily physio and Botox to stretch out her muscles and try to get her fingers open.”
Around six months into her stay in hospital, Alice’s right hand started to be affected too. She has been left with a ‘continual shake’ and says, ‘the clinicians don’t know what brought it on’.
She has been told she will always have a strange sensation down the whole left-hand side of her body. Alice compares it to the feeling when you ‘touch sand’ with her left upper limb ‘ice cold’ to the touch.
Alice admits the hardest part has been the loss of her friendship group and social life. Her mum described her as a ‘sociable girl’ who ‘loved to go out and mix with people’.
During her time at Headway, the Charity that works to improve the lives of those who have suffered brain injuries, she started to think about how her journey could help others going through a similar health crisis.
Jennifer said: “Alice was able to connect with people in a way only someone who has experienced what she has been through can. When someone was struggling to learn to walk again, she would say ‘look, I couldn’t walk, but now I’m standing’.
“That really resonated with patients who were trying to follow her and walk without sticks. They were going to the gym, where they wouldn’t go in the gym before.”
Alice wanted to go back to her studies and thought about changing her career pathway to become a physiotherapist as she wanted to give something back and make a difference.
Jennifer added: “She wanted to get back to normal and visited a university to see if it was something she would be able to do.
“But that first visit, we realised that she wasn’t up to doing that, and it left her feeling a bit low, because she wanted to help people, going through what she had.”
That’s when the Wrights came up with the idea of a sponsored walk. Alice still uses a walking aid or holds on to someone for support when outside. Nevertheless, she was determined to do the challenge on her own.
She said: “We had such a brilliant day walking around our village, and everyone was so generous.
“It is important for me to be able to give back and share my experiences to help others. I hope the money we raised will go towards saving another life.”
Debra Sima, Wales Air Ambulance Regional Fundraising Manager for North East Wales, said: “The whole team at Wales Air Ambulance are in awe of Alice!
“She is an inspirational woman and a fantastic role model, who has overcome so much in three years.
“Not only has she helped those coming to terms with traumatic life-changing injuries whilst continuing her own rehabilitation, but she has also taken on a fundraising challenge.
“Alice has helped raise an incredible £2,800, every pound will go towards saving lives across Wales. Diolch yn fawr.”
