THE BACKDROP:
Hi, I'm Thimme Gowda, a golf coach from Bangalore.
This is the story of my brother Yogesh Gowda.
Yogesh was a golf coach at the Hyderabad Golf Association. He learned golf by working as a caddy. Then, he coached at the Bangalore Golf Club before moving to Hyderabad.
One day, there was a terrible accident on the road from Bangalore to Hyderabad. Yogesh was in it. He got badly hurt, with 45% burns. Doctors didn't know if he would make it, but Yogesh fought hard to survive. Now, he looks very different, and he lost eight fingers.
Yogesh needs to have many surgeries to fix his injuries. We need to raise INR 8.1 Lakh for his treatment. We're asking for your help to raise this money. Yogesh wants to get better so he can go back to coaching golf, which he loves so much.
We need to raise INR 8.1L through this campaign to do the same.
Pic: Before and after images of Yogesh.
THE DETAILS OF THE INCIDENT:
On the 30th of October 2013, Yogesh was traveling from Bangalore to Hyderabad in a Volvo. About 150 kilometers outside Hyderabad, that ill-fated bus caught fire after hitting a culvert on the highway.
More than forty people died, and only five passengers survived, all thanks to Yogesh’s presence of mind and efforts to kick open the emergency door.
However, he suffered 45% burns and was in the DRDO Apollo Hospital in Hyderabad for four months, fighting for his life.
Pic: Here's the chilling aftermath of the Volvo bus that caught fire in the horrific accident. (For more information about the accident, please check the news articles below).
The freak bus accident nearly extinguished the life, passion, and livelihood of Yogesh, who had climbed his way up from humble beginnings to become a golf coach. The deaths of his father and brother-in-law, who were breadwinners, had already plunged the family into dire financial pressures. Yogesh had been the family's hope until that ill-fated accident.
This tragedy not only altered his life but also shattered his dream of being a golf coach as the fire consumed his fingers. His fingers, crucial for a golfer, had to be amputated. Yogesh, once an outgoing, bubbly, and enthusiastic individual, now scarcely ventures out of the house. Each time he does, he faces the risk of infection or uncomfortable stares from people.
Throughout this harrowing ordeal, one of our family's saviors has been Dr. Ajayettan, our family physician. He has been visiting our home every day for a whole year to assist Yogesh with dressings and ensure his safety from infections.
THE SURGEONS AND HOSPITAL WHO ARE DOING THE SURGERY:
My brother, Yogesh Gowda, and I were then introduced to the doctors at Annasawmy Mudaliar General Hospital in Bangalore through the team at Fueladream.com.
The hospital, located in Fraser Town, suggested a plan involving reconstructive surgeries for Yogesh, along with physiotherapy. The plan prioritizes surgeries aimed at restoring Yogesh's ability to hold a golf club and teach, which includes lengthening his fingers. The doctors at Annasawmy Mudaliar Hospital in Bangalore, Dr. BA Anantharam and Dr. Anusham are top plastic surgeons who also happen to be golfers. They understand precisely what Yogesh needs.
The hospital, affiliated with the Dhanvanthri Hospital Society, offers surgeries at a concessional rate, with all funds collected through this campaign directed exclusively to the Society.
Please join us in supporting Yogesh as he tries to recover and get back to doing what he loves. Your help can make a big difference in his life
COST BREAK UP OF THE RECONSTRUCTIVE SURGERIES:
(These details are given by the doctors at the Annasawmy Mudaliar Hospital - part of the Dhanvanthri Hospital Society)
The reconstruction surgeries will happen in 3 stages :
The primary goal of the reconstructive surgeries is to assist Yogesh in returning to coaching, enabling him to stand on his own feet and continue financially supporting his family. These surgeries will be conducted over a 12 to 15-month period, as each procedure requires a recovery period.
To help Yogesh regain his life back, there is an urgent need to raise INR 8.1 lakhs.
In addition to the above mentioned 3 stages of surgeries, if some finishing procedures may be "requested"/"planned" the Dhanvanthri Hospital Society is considering that to be "INCLUSIVE" in this campaign as part of their contribution to the cause to rehabilitate and restore this young man as far as possible.
NEWS ARTICLES ON THE ACCIDENT:
TAX BENEFITS:
Funding for this campaign is eligible for tax breaks. This campaign also accepts Foreign funds. All the receipts for your donations will be generated & given to you from the Dhanvanthri Hospital Society.
Risks and challenges
* There can be delays in surgery timelines depending on how quickly Yogesh recovers from each procedure.
* The costs indicated take into account inflation and all possible additional costs .There maybe small changes in the exact cost
as these surgeries are planned over a 12-15 month period.
FAQs
Detailed clinical report of the injury:
- His injury at the bus accident took place in October 2013.
- He was hospitalised for 110 days at Apollo Hospital DRDO, Hyderabad.
- He had sustained a 45% Body Surface Area (BSA) burn of IIo & IIIo (degree).
- He has had four(4) major surgeries - to cover the burn affected areas on both hands,and around the eyelids,with a few pre-operative preparatory dressings.
- The back of the hand and parts of the forearm and arm, face and back have been grafted with skin grafts harvested from his thighs and calf.
- He has lost the tips of both thumbs and two segments of two fingers of both hands and one and a half of the distal segments of the other fingers of both hands. there is intense scarring of the palmar skin and palmar surface skin of the fingers resulting in shrinkage and deformity resulting in an inability to straighten the fingers and thumbs ( he cannot hold or even eat with bare hands).
- There is patchy scarring of the forearms and arms till the shoulder regions.
- The back though grafted and healed is heavily scarred.
- There is gross disfigurement of the face. There is however some residual deformity of the eyelids with drooping /outward eversion, also deformity of both upper and lower lips with a loss of the lip seal ( resulting in drooling of saliva). Gross deformity of nose with loss of the natural covering skin, and grafted ares of the supporting structures of nose.
- Severe scarring around the mouth with distortion of the lips compounded with scarring of the neck in continuity.
- Loss of both auricles (80% on the (R) and near total on the (L)).
- There is scarring on the back ( sort of butterfly wing pattern).
- Extensive use of Skin graft donor sites both thighs and (L) calf, and consequently very limited areas as donor sites for Split skin Grafts, indicating the need to consider extensive full thickness grafts and flaps for reconstruction
