Escaped death but became disabled after traffic accident

Disaster strikes

At nearly 9 p.m., as night fell, Ms. Cao Thi Yen, born in 1979 in Phuong Tan village, Kim Lien commune (Kim Thanh) hurried home after a long day of work. After finishing her company work, she returned home to take care of her 17-year-old child who was paralyzed in a traffic accident.

On the evening of June 22, Tran Duc Nguyen, born in 2007, the son of Ms. Yen, and two friends in the village were riding a motorbike to Hai Duong City to play. Unfortunately, they had an accident while passing through a section of road near Truong Thanh Hotel. Nguyen suffered cranial nerve damage, a broken vertebrae in his back, and a broken arm.

With red, teary eyes, she said: “For more than 2 months in the hospital, Nguyen was like a vegetable, lying there unconscious, eyes closed, eating and drinking completely through a tube. The family was short of people, so after a period of treatment at Viet Duc Hospital, my family asked to transfer him to Hai Duong General Hospital for convenient care.” By the third month, Nguyen’s health had improved, he no longer had to eat through a tube, his eyes were open but he was still not completely conscious, occasionally having pain attacks, screaming, yelling, and hitting his sister.

People say "at 17, you can break a buffalo's horn", but the traffic accident turned Ms. Yen's son from a healthy, whole person into a vegetative person for 60 days. Until now, after nearly 5 months, he still has to stay in one place. If not for the accident, Nguyen would have been in 12th grade this school year. Now that he has to drop out of school, all his plans and future have to be put on hold.

Ten years ago, Mr. Tran Van Hien, born in 1980, Ms. Yen's husband fell ill, sometimes remembering and sometimes forgetting, sometimes leaving home for a few days before returning. Since then, Ms. Yen has been taking care of all the household chores by herself. The economy was already difficult, now that the accident happened, Ms. Yen had to run around borrowing money from relatives to pay for her child's treatment. The cost of her child's treatment has reached hundreds of millions of dong.

Taking care of her child day and night at the hospital, the 45-year-old mother was exhausted at times, but she told herself to try to overcome it. Relatives on both sides of the family also supported the family to take care of the child. The cost of surgery on two vertebrae of Nguyen's spine was about 180 million VND, but the family's finances were exhausted. Ms. Yen still tried to work overtime every day, but her salary as a worker was only enough to cover the family's living expenses. "My child still has to undergo long-term treatment, and we don't know what the future will be like. If he doesn't have surgery, he may be disabled for life. The family really hopes that benefactors and philanthropists will help so that he has the opportunity to have surgery," Ms. Yen said, choking up.

Mental shock

After a near-death experience, Tran Hung, born in 1969, in Thai Hoc ward (Chi Linh), survived a traffic accident that occurred on September 10. However, the accident left him with a disability of more than 86%.

That morning, like every other day, Mr. Hung was riding his electric motorbike with his 3-year-old granddaughter for a walk. When they reached the intersection of Tan Truong village, they were hit by a car driven by a 48-year-old man from Thuy Nguyen district (Hai Phong). The 3-year-old granddaughter suffered minor injuries, while Mr. Hung suffered a traumatic brain injury and a contusion to the left side of his brain.

Ms. Vu Thi Nhan, born in 1969, Mr. Hung's wife, said: "My husband had an accident and was in a coma for 20 days. After more than 2 months of treatment, he has been treated everywhere. His condition has improved, but he still has to depend entirely on his relatives for everything." To date, one side of Mr. Hung's head is still sunken and cannot be transplanted.

Previously, the family's main source of income was raising chickens. Since Hung's accident, he has spent more time in the hospital than at home. Nhan has been at the hospital and home taking care of her husband. Hung's treatment costs have amounted to hundreds of millions of dong. Their home was peaceful, but the accident caused a lot of disruption.

In the coming time, Mr. Hung will have to continue treatment and have many more surgeries. The time to recover cannot be calculated in months, but in years, even many years. The traffic accident not only caused Mr. Hung physical pain but also caused mental shock to him and his family that is difficult to overcome.

The traffic accident that occurred on May 18, 2024 in Tu Minh Ward (Hai Duong City) caused H.D.T., born in 2014, Tu Minh Primary School, to be injured and have his left leg amputated. That afternoon, T. was taking his friend out on a bicycle on Vu Cong Dan Street when a truck that was not paying attention and could not control its speed ran over his leg.

Since T. had an accident, her mother, Ms. Le Thi Khac, who works for a company, had to stay home to take care of her child. Although she was always there to encourage her child so that he would not be sad, there were still times when he felt sad and self-conscious. T. still went to school but had difficulty moving around and could not play or be active like his friends. Despite the care and encouragement from his family, school, and friends, T. was still at a disadvantage compared to his peers. The injury of losing his left leg was a mental shock that was difficult for anyone to overcome. For a child like T., the difficulties were multiplied because adapting to life after an accident took time and required will and determination.

Traffic accidents have taken the lives of many people, causing many families to suffer loss and grief, many people to suffer physical pain and mental crisis. Therefore, raising awareness of law compliance when participating in traffic is the responsibility of every citizen, joining hands to prevent traffic accidents so as not to witness the heartbreaking tragedies caused by traffic accidents.