James and the TukTuk/Rickshaw Race
Bangalore India
Sunday 30 December 2018 is certainly a night to remember in our house. James was in India with friends Elliot and Kenny for the Rickshaw Challenge race. This is a charity event and all the rickshaws are sponsored. The race was due to begin next day just outside Bangalore. Then the phone call every parent dreads as Elliot rang us to tell us that James had been involved in an accident. I had hoped it was a minor road traffic accident but it was worse. James had a very serious neck injury and paralysed after jumping into a swimming pool. Our hearts sank and we felt so helpless being here in Scotland. We were numb with the shock of this bad news. There were several more phonecalls updating us on James' condition and he was now in intensive care. Luckily Elliot manged to get James out of the swimming pool quickly or he would have drowned and there was by chance an American paramedic there who ensured James was not incorrectly moved etc Also James was taken to a very good hospital (Aster) with a top neurosurgeon Dr Umesh who is excellent and his registrar Dr Yadhu which was again very lucky.
Sun evening was difficult as we searched for flights for Joe to go out to Bangalore as soon as possible. Another problem was the need for an urgent tourist visa for India. It usually takes up to 4 days on line so Joe went down to Edinburgh at 7.30am next morning after a sleepless night to go to the Indian Consulate for the visa. A few hours later and many questions later the visa was finally granted. The next day was new years day and everywhere is closed so getting the visa on Monday saved two days at least. Then Joe off to Glasgow airport for the 9pm new years eve 7 hour flight to Dubai. It was a long lonely flight with endless thoughts running through my head. Having medical knowledge can be a disadvantage at times as one is aware of the possible worst outcomes.
The passengers on the Dubai flight celebrated new years arrival in mid air but with a heavy heart I observed in a detached numb state. Then after Dubai a 4 hour flight to Bangalore. It was now Tues evening 1st Jan when I arrived in Bangalore. For anybody who has not visited India it is certainly a culture shock from the moment of arrival. It is so busy with so many people everywhere and appears chaotic. I got a taxi to the Aster hopital and met Elliot and Kenny in the lobby then went straight to ITU.
David was there already which was great and when I saw James I was relieved to say the least. The surgical team needed to speak with me before urgent surgery next morning. They were very good and discussed the pros and cons of having surgery. Surgical stabilisation of James' neck fracture was needed and there was no other option. So consent was given and we had to hope there would not be any complications.
10 am Wed morning James goes into surgery and he was back in ITU 4 hours later. All went well much to our relief. The Intensive care staff were very good and attentive. However ITU is a very noisy place with all the alarms beeping incessantly so James could not sleep and now exhausted after 4 days. James was then moved to a single room which was a blessing. However there was a constant stream of visitors to his room. Most days 25 people at least would call in and the cleaners came in at 6am. There were some wonderful people looking after James including an inspirational physio called Tapo who really helped. James was initially unable to even sit up as his blood pressure dropped. A tilt table was used to try and help the blood pressure stabilise. Dr Salamatha the rehab consultant was very good to James and supportive to all of us.
Repatriation
Then our next challenge was to try and return to Scotland. This was far more difficult than I could have ever envisaged . There were obstacles everywhere and the insurance company constantly asking for more documentation to be completed. Luckily David was with me and was able to get the required documents etc. Liz was at home trying from her end to arrange repatriation. It was a very long difficult process and not for the faint hearted ! Only by sheer perseverance by Liz and David did the insurance company finally agree to cover the medical costs. Now we can understand the plight of families when a family member is injured abroad and the need for crowdfunding just to get the patient back home. The added worry of trying to get the insurance company's approval when already very worried about a family member is very stressful to say the least. We were now over two weeks in the hospital and each day we had hope of getting home .But each day our hopes were dashed and we were now all exhausted emotionally. Aoife came over to help out and gave James a great boost. James by now was fed up with David and myself !
Aoife has arrived....James wake up !
Aoife was straight into physio mode and took no nonsense from James !! Like Charles Dickens said "these were the best of times and the worse of times " as we laughed and became over joyed when James could suddenly move his left big toe ! A glimmer of hope and the start of James' recovery. But still no flight home as we now are almost 3 weeks in India and needed to get back home .... But then finally we get news of a definite flight home with Air India on Mon 21 st Jan. Even James smiled with this good news.
Flight Home
This was great news but not unsurprisingly without it's problems. It was on an ordinary Air India passenger flight with James down at the back of the plane . To cut a long story short it was the flight from hell. We left the hospital at 2am and the flight was due to leave at 05.40. Shortly after take off which was delayed by two hours due to dense fog there was terrible turbulence for over 3 hours. I have never experienced turbulence like this before as the plane went up and down and then side to side. It was just awful and I was worried James was going to vomit which would have been very serious. James then developed severe abdominal pain after two hours into an 11 hour flight. I thought we might need to divert the flight and this would have been the last thing we needed. All sort of causes came into my head which could have been serious. One is very vulnerable at 28000 feet especially with a tetraplegic spinal injury.To add to the difficulties the air matress James was lying on deflated as he boarded the flight and the power socket on the plane for the electric pump was not working. It was not our lucky day !This greatly increased the risk of a pressure sore developing during the long flight. James was on a trolley which was attached on to a makeshift stand. He could touch the ceiling of the plane and had no arm rests. We had to improvise and use blankets to support his arms. This was very uncomfortable to say the least for James during an 11 hour flight. This was a very long journey and tested our endurance to the limits. However we knew there was no short cut and had to do it.
We arrived in Heathrow and then transferred to Northholt airfield before transfer to Glasgow by air ambulance. This part of the journey could not have been better and we eventually arrive at the Queen Elizabeth Spinal Injuries Unit at 5.30pm. This was the end of our 21 hour epic journey. Liz , Kendal and Aoife were there waiting for us and Liz shed a tear of joy as James arrived home at last. I had a huge sense of relief as the journey home was dangerous in so many ways.
We were delighted to be in the Queen Elizabeth National Spinal Injuries Unit and James was admited to the Edenhall HDU ward. Here James received wonderful care from all the team before transfer to Phillipshill ward on Feb 8th. Over the next five months James had intensive physio and rehab in this excellent unit. He was pushed to succeed by all the team and in particular the fantastic physio Claire, OT Jen and nurse Steven who were able to push James to achieve his ever changing goals over the months. After a few weeks having been initially bedbound James was now transferring himself from his wheelchair. Then getting wheelchair skills and walking using crutches. James was now much stronger and getting fit again. Having physio twice a day and setting goals definitely helped.The recovery is not just physical and James' natural determination and competitive spirit has helped him in his journey to recovery.
I have no doubt that the huge support from so many friends who called in to visit regularly was a significant factor in James' recovery. Being isolated in hospital can be very challenging and having so many friends visiting helped maintain morale which is crucial in recovery. Being visited by so many friends and colleagues helped to keep James cheerful and he is lucky to have such a strong social network. Horatio's garden also had a very positive impact on James' recovery as he was able to get out of his room to get some fresh air and have a chat in the pods which was great for visitors.
The weeks went by some quicker than others in an emotional roller coaster fashion and luckily we rented a flat very near the hospital. This had a huge positive impact for all of us as visitors and family could come and go easily. Also more importantly we could cook dinner and then bring it over to James every evening. The importance of having one's main meal together as a family cannot be underestimated and the home cooking is hard to beat especially when one is in hospital ! So we were very fortunate to be able to do this which helped James get stronger and enjoy his dinner. Simple things become more important when ill. Also after a few weeks James was able to leave the unit for a few hours and go out to meet friends.
The Spinal Unit is a place of great joy and sadness all combined into one. All of the staff are very cheerful and positive with plenty of Glaswegian wit and banter especially the cleaning staff like Martin. The medical and nursing teams have compasion with a wealth of experience and enjoy seeing a patients like James improve which brought a smile to so many faces. But also the sadness of some patients who have complete spinal cord injuries without any hope of recovery is difficult to watch. Some patients may be an in patient in the unit for up to a year .Each patient has their own unique story to tell and different journey to travel. They share the common problem that their lives are changed and they have to adjust to this challenge. The courage shown by James and so many patients in the unit is amazing as they each come to terms with their injuries.
The McGuinns visit from Galway
We have been overwhelmed by support from family members,friends,work colleagues ,employer Liberty,the Fort William community and people all over the world which is very humbling. Kendal has been a tower of strength and ever cheerful. The ripples of pain go out much further than one would expect but a tsunami of support has come back in .James continues his journey to recovery with great determination and courage which keeps us all going.When a family member has a serious illness one is suddenly made aware of how much we take our health for granted and we are so thankful that James is still his usual self. It is still early days in James' recovery process and with the aid of a functional electrical stimulator on his right calf James was able to walk 2000 steps which is wonderful. The rehab programme continues daily and James will give it 100% no doubt.
Bryan Simpson and Craig Forbes called up to our house in May to ask if it was ok to do a fundraiser for James. The lads wanted to help James and were planning a Three Peaks Challenge. Of course was my reply and this was a great idea as the boys needed an excuse to train for the "Ben" in Sept. Bryan then set up a JustGiving webpage for donations and the target was £3500. Little did we know at the time that this target was going to be absolutely smashed in a few weeks. The 3 peaks team was finalised with Darren Quigg and Ross Wilson joining Bryan and Craig. The training began and the 8th August was the date set for the challenge. The boys knew this was going to be a tight schedule especially for Ross who was nominated the Uber man for the trip. The weeks flew by and the boys completed the challenge and were very unlucky with the weather on the top of Ben Nevis which was atrocious that night. It was very dangerous for the lads who had to turn back at 4000ft. This was a very wise decison as they were now freezing cold and wet with terrible visibility. We are extremly grateful to the lads for their fantastic achievment and generosity to James.
The JustGiving webpage raised £23,000 which is incredible far excedding the target of £3,500. The generosity and kindness of so many people in Fort william and all around the world has been wonderful and we are very grateful to everybody who contributed to the fund.
The Lochaber and Oban Times reported
Colleagues of a Fort William shinty player hurt in India have raised more than £21,000 to help his recovery – despite the weather making it a tough challenge. Bryan Simpson, Craig Forbes and Darren Quigg pledged to complete the Three Peaks Challenge for their friend James Tangney.
Mr Tangney, 28, was left temporarily paralysed from the neck down after an accident in India late last year resulted in a broken neck and spinal cord injury He underwent intensive surgery abroad before being flown back to Glasgow's Queen Elizabeth Hospital for rehabilitation.
The trio set out on their intrepid adventure on August 8 up Wales' tallest peak Snowdon, before setting their sights on Scafell Pike in the Lake District. As heavy showers and thunderstorms battered the north yesterday, the trio began their final assent up Ben Nevis in the hope of reaching the summit. However, the group were forced to turn back at 4,000ft.
They wrote on social media: “Three peaks completed 16hrs 12mins. Unfortunately never summited the Ben, adverse weather at 4,000ft.”
The group have so far raised more than £21,000 for the cause, smashing their initial £3,500 target.
Fellow member Ross Wilson, who took on the challenge of transporting the fundraising team on their mammoth 475-mile journey, praised the men for facing such harsh conditions head on.
He said: “Huge respect for putting themselves through so much pain and still managing still to have a laugh all the way through right up till I dropped them all of at home. The thought of them even getting out of the car and heading up the Ben in those conditions was actually quite worrying.”
The second big fundraising event was the Race Night in the Shinty club. This was held on Fri 9th August and the first Race Night to be held in the club. It was a great night and a big turnout with Martyn Cameron the MC. I had expected Martyn to be subdued and reserved as usual especially with his recent Love Island rejection but I was proved wrong. He was on the" rebound" I think and came out on fire . Martyn used his banter and wit to inflict insults on as many people as possible in a record time. He had to leave with Darren and Garry his security guards as he was a wanted man by the end of the night. Another possible reason was that he had all the money for the night stuffed inside his shirt and needed to leave quickly ! He gave James a wee cheeky smile just going out the door knowing that James could never catch him especially over rough ground ! However you will be pleased to know that I surprised him in Lidls carpark and he was crying like a baby when he handed all the money back to me. It was tempting to bring him back to the shinty club but there was no need to resort to this severe action.
A surprise guest was Mr Alan Morgon who was year head and Deputy Head when James was in the Lochaber High School. Alan escaped from his nursing home near Coupar and arrived on a moped without his carers. He initially went to the wrong venue and handed over his bottle of whisky at the door until about a half hour later he realised there was no sign of James and he was at Father Roddy's farewell in the Railway Club. They kicked him out eventually as he kept pestering people asking where is James hiding? Somebody sent him on to the Shinty club where he now found James. He knew most of the crowd who were his former pupils and he soon began to open up old wounds ! He was in great form and we let him stay up until 9pm before putting him into the boot of a car wrapped in a big tartan rug and an old school yearbook to read. He was still talking but no making any sense as usual when I had to forcibly move his fingers off the edge of the boot before quickly slamming it closed. I could still hear the chatter as I walked away and in a moment of weakness I handed him back his mobile phone so that he could chat to somebody all night. Needless to say I blocked his number immediately on my phone. He was seen later in the Volley and trying to find his way to the Roobarb nightclub. We hope he will eventually find his way back to the nursing home and the other residents are reportedly enjoying his abscence !
The Race Night was a great success and a big thank you to everybody who gave their time to organise and run the night. The Fort William and shinty community's generosity is amazing and much appreciated by all of us. Thank you all very much.
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The race night crowd warm up !
The Balliemore Cup winners 2019 for the second time in club history.
Feb 2019 James wins Player of the year 2018 for the fourth year in a row.
(James says it was pity vote that won it for him even though it was before his accident !!)
As mentioned earlier we have had support from so many people from far and wide. James got a message from Robert MacIntyre in Oban to say he was going to auction his golf bag which he used in his first British Open and came 6th which was the begining of a wonderful year for Robert. This culminated in winning Rookie of the Year in Dubai and a world ranking of 66. Robert has played shinty for Oban Celtic and wanted to help James.
Robert then arranged to meet James personally in Fort William with his family to give James the proceeds from the auction. This gesture of kindness and generosity is much appreciated by James and all of us. The shinty family is a strong one and we wish Robert every success in his bright future golfing career. Thank you very much Robert and you are a true Higland gentleman. PS If you have time could you give David a few lessons ??
Ciaran Graduation June 2019
Ciaran graduated from Waikato University in June
In the photo above he is joined by Geoff and Karen who have been so supportive and helpful to Ciaran. They are his third set of adoptive parents in New Zealand ! First Kim his godmother in Dargaville and JD, then Ivan and Anita in Tauranga. In fact it was Geoff who sugested teaching as a career to Ciaran and it has been a wonderful journey for Ciaran. Thank you Geoff and Karen for all your help and I hope Ciaran will pay you back all the money he owes you in the next 10 years !! I told him he must pay me first so you might have to wait a few more years !! Somehow Ciaran always lands on his feet and is enoying his new career teaching in Greymouth. After he won the Bonny baby contest aged 2 he has not looked back ...in fact he has not looked better and as the photo below proves that was him peaking too early!!
Ciaran phoned home and I could feel the fear in his voice ...
I said " will you be very rich and famous as that might ease your mother's anguish and heartbreak when she looks at your empty chair around the table during the big family dinner ?" Again a long silence which I knew meant he was going to be Very Poor and famous. But Ciaran bounced back as he was desparate to find a reason to accept the once in a lifetime space trip instead of his mother's long awaited big family dinner. He said "tell mum I will say a prayer for her as I will be very close to heaven" I have to say this was a masterful move by Ciaran knowning that Liz would be very impressed if Ciaran said a prayer even here on earth but while up near heaven was a stroke of genius ! That promise of a quick hail Mary was enough for Ciaran to abandon his mother ,his family ,the big dinner and blast off into outer space.
This opportunity of a trip into the strathosphere was like winning the lottery for Ciaran. Science teachers from all over New Zealand were invited to apply for just 8 places on this modified jumbo jet. Ciaran never stuck for words applied and was very luckly to have been chosen. The full version of the trip would take several hours to tell you and Ciaran is available via his agent if you wish to meet him personally for all the gorey details. Let's just say it was very exciting and one of the highlights was the Southern Lights. These were spectacular and the photos don't do it justice.
Once back on earth Ciaran has been milking the celebrity status and did a presentation to the whole school and local newspaper article. We know many people have been avoiding him since the trip as he does seem to bring it up in conversation repeatedly!!
Ciaran gets some flying lessons from the pilots as they head straight towards an ateroid.
Ciaran is now claiming a new world record for wearing a Kilt at 42,000 feet. The Guinness book of records have not yet verified this new record but Ciaran is sure that the title is his as astronauts don't seem to like wearing kilts !! I suppose one can understand their dilemma when in a weight less situation !!
Ciaran and his new friend who wants to swap outfits.
Ciaran has it made .......with his bottle of Corona and two lovely ladies.
NZ teachers go stratospheric on international high altitude plane, SOFIA
Published: 15 July 2019
Eight of the South Island's most outstanding science teachers have been selected to fly on board NASA and German Aerospace Centre's Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) while it operates out of Christchurch this winter. This unique opportunity provides teachers a hands-on scientific experience to increase their knowledge of astronomy and, once they're back on terra firma, to inspire their students.
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SOFIA is a Boeing 747SP aircraft modified to carry a 2.7-metre reflecting telescope. It is the world's premiere infrared astronomy observatory, flying into the stratosphere at 11,000 - 14,000 metres. This puts SOFIA above 99 per cent of Earth's infrared-blocking atmosphere, allowing astronomers to study the solar system and beyond in ways that ground-based telescopes cannot. SOFIA is made possible through a partnership between NASA and the German Aerospace Centre (DLR).
The teachers on board SOFIA took off from Christchurch on two, 10-hour missions on 25 June and 10 July, giving them an extraordinary experience to explore new frontiers in the solar system and cutting edge space technology.
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Miranda Satterthwaite, Ciaran Tangney, Carolyn Green, Anna Johnston, Tawhai Moss (New Zealand Space Agency), Briar Hubbard , Ian Griffin (Otago Museum), Rob Mitchell (Embassy of the United States).
NASA
'NASA's SOFIA mission is a great example of Kiwi and U.S. collaboration on science, space, technology and more,' said U.S. Ambassador to New Zealand Scott Brown. 'I hope this flight for teachers inspires our educators and future generations to keep working together and explore careers in science.'
The eight South Island teachers, selected by the New Zealand Space Agency and supported by the Embassy of the United States, Wellington, flew alongside NASA and DLR scientists to learn about infrared astronomy and the technologies and scientific experiments being used. SOFIA flights enable researchers to study astronomical events that often take place over oceans where there are no telescopes. Data gathered on SOFIA missions expands our knowledge of celestial magnetic fields, how stars form, planets, comets and asteroid events, and black holes.
During the flights, the educators looked-on as SOFIA scientists observed the centre of the Milky Way Galaxy, a binary star in the constellation Antila, a metal-rich asteroid known as 75 Eurydike, and a star that exploded more than 30 years ago, known as Supernova 1987A.
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Instruments inside SOFIA working on imaging the centre of the Milky Way Galaxy using data being collected by the infra-red telescope on board.
NZ Space Agency/Tawhai Moss
Miranda Satterthwaite, Education Manager of the International Antarctic Centre says, 'Once I'm back in the classroom we're planning on running aerodynamics classes based on SOFIA's design, and some of our future projects will focus on engineering and science in extreme environments including in space, so this flight is giving me authentic content I'd not be able to normally get.'
It is big news according to West Coast teacher Ciaran Tangney from Greymouth High School, too: 'After the flight I'm already booked to talk to the school during assembly and the local newspaper has asked for an interview. This goes to show how exciting it is for the West Coast!'
'This opportunity was a fantastic way for New Zealand educators to witness scientific observations first-hand. They'll be taking that knowledge back into the classroom to teach students the value of space research, and the exciting career opportunities in the space sector,' says Dr. Peter Crabtree, General Manager Science, Innovation and International at the Ministry of Science, Innovation and Employment.
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https://www.mbie.govt.nz/about/news/nz-teachers-go-stratospheric-on-international-high-altitude-plane-sofia/
Sat the 5th Oct was hectic with Aoife's shinty international in Waterford at 1pm then the birthday party in Kinvara Galway at 7.30pm. It was a double party with Liz's 60th and David's 50th combined. All the Slattery family were there apart from Michael who lives in San Francisco and was home during the summer. Martin made a surprise visit home and it was good to catch up with him. We had a lovely meal in the Pierhead Restaurant then over to Green's pub for a great night. The pub is small and was packed. There was a disco until late and it was a lively night. Amazingly all the Slattery family did not have any disagreements which made me wonder was the drink spiked ??
Team Slattery in Galway ...David cheer up !
The young ones Cathal, Alana , Eoin(and Mike)meet the oldies
Greens pub in Kinvara
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