Hi this is a blog to update those concerned about Chaminda
One Friday 28th October Chaminda’s daughter Miuni phoned me to say Chaminda was very ill and in hospital. I flew the next day to Colombo and went straight to the state hospital in Galle to discover Chaminda very ill surrounded by friends and family. It was very difficult to understand how best to deal with the situation as information kept changing. Despite his condition he was sent home. He had seen a neurologist surgeon who said he had brain bleed which is related to an existing condition and has caused a stroke resulting in paralysis of the left side of his body. Muini and I went to see the consultant about the underlying condition. He said the problem was long term. We wanted a second opinion so sent all their notes to the no 1 brain surgeon in Sri Lanka . Meanwhile Chaminda had been to hospital for an endoscopy which left him very weak. When I came back from the meeting with the consultant Chaminda was awake and being massaged by his son Thehan and being fed by his wife Dilani and daughter Amaya. He tried talking to me but it was difficult to understand. What is clear is that if he can make the best progress he will not be well enough to work for the foreseeable future. His deputy Hassanta is with me at Sunbeach preparing rooms for the season and we are talking to Muini and the staff to see how we might manage the business without Chaminda who you will know is at the absolute centre of everything Sunbeach. It’s not a great situation but we were able to make a plan .
Nov 4th We’re on the way to Colombo
A bit of a mammoth rollercoaster of a day with a good ending. The first neurosurgeon ( neuro1) we saw two days ago said surgery was too dangerous so he wouldn’t do it. So today we left in a crazy monsoon to Colombo at 6.30am for a 9,30 appointment with the “best”neurosurgeon in Sri Lanka ( neuro2). He was 2 hours late We showed him the crt scan from the first neurosurgeon and told us he “thought” he could operate but we would have to see another consultant who could identify the underlying problems in his hospital and they would work out a plan. We asked how much it would cost and he said if we weren’t sure we could pay a more or less open cheque then he couldn’t start. Gopal a close friend of Chaminda and myself who was with us said at least £30,000 maybe more so we decided to go for a third opinion and booked an appointment in another hospital for 4 pm and waited. That doctor (.neuro3) was also 2 hours late but once he looked at the scan and examined Chaminda he said the blood clot was definitely being absorbed into the brain and it was clear that he was getting better and definitely didn’t need surgery. He then sent Chaminda for another CRT scan to confirm his diagnosis and so we went for that at 7 pm and then had to take it to another hospital where neuro3 had moved on to. We arrived there and no one could find him. Eventually he was discovered in surgery. He came out confirmed that his diagnosis was correct and Chaminda could go home, be in the care of his GP and get some physio to get the use back of his armand leg. So great news although the underlying condition is still a major problem.
By the 9th November I felt Chaminda was stable enough and Miuni and the team at Sunbeach could continue without my support so I returned to Glasgow. I speak or text Miuni every day and she says with daily physio he continues to get a little better
I’ll keep putting major updates here. If you would like to support Chaminda and his family you can do to here.https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/friends-of-sunbeach-chaminda-needs-you No matter how small every donation counts – physio costs £20 a day!
Neil