{"id":676571,"date":"2026-01-06T00:44:14","date_gmt":"2026-01-06T00:44:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/676571\/"},"modified":"2026-01-06T00:44:14","modified_gmt":"2026-01-06T00:44:14","slug":"glasgow-patient-who-spent-four-weeks-in-coma-profoundly-grateful-after-medics-saved-his-life","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/676571\/","title":{"rendered":"Glasgow patient who spent four weeks in coma ‘profoundly grateful’ after medics saved his life"},"content":{"rendered":"

Brian Wands underwent multiple life-saving operations, 84 days in intensive care and four weeks in a coma during his seven-month admission to Glasgow Royal Infirmary.<\/p>\n

17:07, 05 Jan 2026Updated 18:55, 05 Jan 2026<\/p>\n

\"BrianBrian Wands spent 84 days in intensive care due to the illness(Image: NHSGGC)<\/p>\n

A Glasgow<\/a> patient who spent 84 days in intensive care and four weeks in a coma says he is “forever grateful” for the life-saving care he received. Brian Wands’ life was saved thanks to the care provided by teams at Glasgow Royal Infirmary<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Brian, from Hamilton, went through a prolonged, life-threatening illness in 2022 but recently completed his care under the hospital\u2019s nutrition team in September 2025. It came following a seven-month admission which also included multiple life-saving operations<\/a> and a 95-unit blood transfusion.<\/p>\n

He has since written a letter, thanking staff for their fantastic work and helping his recovery. He described the experience as \u201can extraordinary journey back to health, only made possible through the dedication and collective expertise of the hospital teams.\u201d<\/p>\n

He hailed the efforts of staff spanning intensive care, high dependency, and wards 64, 65, and 66 for saving his life and allowing him to return to his family and role as a chief technology officer.<\/p>\n

\"BrianBrian has penned a letter thanking the staff at GRI(Image: NHSGGC)<\/p>\n

Among those singled out for special recognition were:<\/p>\n

\u2022 Mr Euan Dickson, Consultant Surgeon \u2013 praised for surgical skill and calm leadership during critical operations.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Dr Tara Quasim, Intensive Care Consultant \u2013 commended for unwavering presence during Brian\u2019s sickest hours and compassionate support for his family through the InS:PIRE clinic.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Mr Phil Stevens, Consultant Surgeon \u2013 acknowledged for managing complex nutritional care and leading recovery surgery.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Miss Fiona Leitch, Consultant Surgeon \u2013 recognised for persistence and attention to detail in resolving complex issues.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Caroline and the Nutrition\/Dietetics Team \u2013 thanked for their expertise and empathy throughout a three-year recovery.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Jill Meldrum and the Physiotherapy Team \u2013 credited with helping Brian regain mobility after weeks in a coma.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Lesley Tough, Staff Nurse \u2013 praised for professionalism, encouragement, and emotional support during long months of care.<\/p>\n

Brian also praised the wider hospital community, including ICU and HDU teams, nurses, healthcare support workers, dieticians, physiotherapists, pharmacists, theatre and recovery staff, porters, domestic and admin staff, radiology, and phlebotomy teams.<\/p>\n

\"TheThe care has allowed Brian to return to being a husband and dad(Image: NHSGGC)<\/p>\n

Reflecting on his health journey, he said: “Thanks to these teams, my wife still has a husband, my children still have their dad, and I have been able to return to my role.<\/p>\n

“I think about what happened every single day, and I am profoundly grateful for everything that was done to save me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Now, Brian is enjoying milestones he never thought possible such as practising Pilates daily, holding a five-minute plank, and returning to the tennis court. His family is also preparing for their first holiday in three years – all thanks to the life-saving care he received at GRI.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Brian Wands underwent multiple life-saving operations, 84 days in intensive care and four weeks in a coma during…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":676572,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4316],"tags":[57720,105,4348,455,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-676571","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-healthcare","8":"tag-glasgow-royal-infirmary","9":"tag-health","10":"tag-healthcare","11":"tag-real-life","12":"tag-uk","13":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/115845389989683783","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/676571","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=676571"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/676571\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/676572"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=676571"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=676571"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=676571"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}