A young mother faced a life-threatening situation and slipped into a coma after a gastric sleeve surgery in Turkey went awry.
Chloe Quick, a 23-year-old NHS worker, now grapples with a hefty medical bill following complications arising from the £1,500 weight loss procedure.
Just hours after the surgery, Chloe experienced severe bleeding and collapsed. An endoscopy revealed a ruptured spleen, necessitating immediate life-saving surgery. Placed in a medically induced coma, her family received grim news with only a 50/50 chance of survival.
Thankfully, Chloe, residing in Hereford, survived the ordeal and is presently recuperating in a private clinic in Istanbul.
Facing a bill of £5,300 for emergency treatment and repatriation, Chloe’s family and friends have launched a fundraising campaign. Chloe, employed as a health care assistant at Hereford County Hospital, must prolong her hospital stay to avoid the risk of blood clots from flying prematurely.
In support, her close friend Leah Mattson, also 23, who underwent gastric sleeve surgery in a different Turkish clinic, initiated a GoFundMe page to aid in covering expenses.
She said: “Chloe has always worried about money and the only thing she was scared of before her surgery was handing over that large amount of money, never did she believe she would nearly not come home. I feel sick for her, she just came so close to losing her life and now they are asking for money she doesn’t have.
“Chloe is the last person to ask for help when she needs it, she worked herself to the bone to save this money for the surgery doing extra shifts at the hospital. I had this surgery myself and was an inspiration to Chloe to get it done as mine was successful, it breaks my heart and eats me up that hers went wrong.”
Leah said the surgery had originally been deemed a success until later that evening Chloe suffered a sharp pain and blood gushed into her drain.
She added: “They had to perform emergency surgery to re-do the sleeve and repair her spleen. They had to put her into a medically induced coma.
“The staff told Chloe’s dad that there was a 50/50 chance of her pulling through this and the next 24 hours were crucial. This was life or death for Chloe; her family and close friends have been so worried the last few days not knowing if she was going to make it home to her two-year-old son.”
