My Trip to Feldkirch

It was with some trepidation that I set off for Feldkirch on 20th May 2009. A 6:00am flight from Heathrow and then a two hour train ride made it a very simple journey – but how would Paul be? Would he recognise me and would he want to see me? How bad would his facial damage be? Was I interfering? I had been following the blog and keeping in touch with Penny – but what was the reality?

Paul’s current position is as follows:

• He can get out of bed with help. He can walk like an old man – stooped and shuffling his feet in tiny steps. His balance is still precarious.
• He talks in a soft voice – sometimes in a very slow, measured way with very short sentences – sometimes with more fluency.
• His long term memory appears strong and normal. He asked after Lucy and said that he had recently seen my brother Christopher at Glasgow Airport. He said Christopher had been coming back from Islay, which was exactly right. However, his short term memory can be confused.
• He is interested in current affairs and spends a lot of time watching CNN business news. He can read slowly. Penny buys him the FT every day and I read him articles about M&S cutting its dividend and the US housing market.
• He has lost 20kg of weight and looks drawn. There is a huge scar that goes from one ear to the middle of his head. One eye is often covered with a patch.

However, one forgets the impact this terrible accident has had very quickly, and one just concentrates on the fact that this is the same Paul we have always known.

Medically the current problem is a cerebral leakage. If the current fix does not work, this may or may not involve another operation over the next two weeks. This leak needs to be sorted before he can be moved away from Feldkirch to a specialised rehabilitation clinic where the emphasis is on intensive physiotherapy.

Being around for 24 hours was an insight into hospital life – and how vital it is to have a helper to organise affairs. Wonderful as the nurses are, an extra person is needed to adjust the pillows, to get more food, to fill up the water glass and most importantly, to be involved in the decision making processes that arise every day.

Penny of course has been doing this role for 100 days now. It is relentless and full on. We have had descriptions of Penny in Napoleon mode and in Mrs Thatcher mode, but I saw her more in Florence Nightingale mode. Her care and devotion was deeply moving. The bond that exists between the two is mesmerising to watch.

Penny was so welcoming and Paul so pleased to see a familiar face – it was that of course, that made the whole visit wonderfully rewarding and uplifting. The accident was over three months ago and Paul has made astonishing progress from those early days that seemed so dark and held only slithers of hope. The current medical complication is typical of the many hurdles that line the way. He is still very vulnerable and infections remain a severe danger. There is a very long way to go for the whole Hilton Family – and Paul is recovering in his own time.

David Pease 23rd May 2009