Man lost ability to speak and communicated through blinking after drink spiked

In his early 20’s, Adam Bourne (pictured) had his drink spiked and spent three months in hospital in a coma, which resulted in him only being able to communicate by blinking.

Adam Bourne, a 31-year-old resident at the Greenside Court home, is set to tackle 20 stands from a seating position in aid of our NHS heroes.

In his early 20’s, Adam had his drink spiked and spent three months in hospital in a coma, which resulted in him only being able to communicate by blinking.

Eventually, he moved onto a rehabilitation ward and spent nine months working on his mobility and communication.

In 2017, Adam moved to Exemplar Health Care’s Greenside Court, which specialises in supporting adults living with complex needs arising from neuro-disability, brain injury, stroke and mental ill-health.

With the support of the NHS and Exemplar Health Care staff, Adam now has full mobility in the right side of his body which means that he can control his electric wheelchair and use an assisted speech programme on his iPad to communicate.

Over the next 6 to 12 months, Adam hopes to regain mobility in his left arm, and eventually would like to move into independent living.

Lee Garner, skills development Facilitator at Greenside Court, said: “We’re proud of Adam for taking on this personally challenging task to raise funds for the NHS.

“It’s been an incredible journey watching Adam build his independence and develop his everyday living skills since moving to Greenside Court.

“We’re all dedicated to supporting Adam to achieve his goals over the next few years, and hope that we eventually make his dream of moving into independent living come true.”

Adam, who is originally from Barnsley, said: “I want to raise money for the NHS who I personally have a lot to be thankful for and to thank them for everything they did for me.”

Adam is currently in training and the challenge will take place on Thursday, June 25.

You can follow @exemplarhealthcare on Facebook to keep up to date.

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