By DANIELLE GALVIN
Bike crash patient shows his thanks to medical staff…
TRAVIS Cartledge’s message to the doctors and nurses at The Alfred hospital was simple – ‘thanks for saving my life’.
Pictures of him in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) were sprawled across a message board he had hung above the barbecue in the hospital’s courtyard on Monday afternoon.
He is recognisable only by his trademark blonde dreads and the tattoos on his arm, one in memory of his father who had passed away six weeks before the motorbike accident that left him fighting for his life.
But on Monday, the focus was on the doctors and nurses, those who helped breathe life into Travis and 11 months on, he is saying thanks.
“It’s just a form of giving back, they saved my life and I thought I should just say thanks,” he said.
“I’ve popped in before, but this barbecue shows my appreciation.”
The 28-year-old doesn’t remember much about the accident which happened on his way to work on the Monash Freeway towards Narre Warren.
It was early on 31 May last year when his world stopped.
It’s still unclear what caused Travis to veer into the wire barriers, which caused extensive internal injuries and forced him to put his life on hold.
“Police did an investigation, I wanted answers, but they put it straight down to an accident,” he said.
Two weeks in an induced coma followed emergency surgery and sleepless nights for his mum Pam who he affectionately calls ‘the old duck’, older brother Scott, as well as the rest of his friends, family and the Kooweerup community.
“I was telling the old duck last night I don’t know whether I would take it back – it gave me a second chance, it’s a gift,” he said.
For eight months Travis walked with a limp and he hasn’t been able to return to his work as a carpenter, although he has just returned from a Malaysian holiday.
Pam listed his injuries including nine fractures in his arm, a broken femur, fractured knee cap, six broken ribs, broken bones in his land, a bruised heart and lungs, a split liver and fractured vertebrates.
She said she’s lucky to have her son, the sort of man who would do anything for anyone.
“He’s such a great boy – I’m so proud of him,” Pam said.
“We asked what the prognosis was at the time.”
At the barbecue, Travis was joined by a couple of his mates who they is a “hell of a guy” and an amazing person.
It’s this spirit that touched the hearts of those who treated Travis, including one ICU nurse Majella who said the family was particularly memorable.
“He looks great – it must be all the love that he gets,” she said.
