Miracle matriculant
Family tell how teen defied 95% chance of death to write exams
IF NOT for a midnight phone call from a neurosurgeon, a shaky goahead from his parents and what even the veterans of Greenacres Hospital’s intensive care unit have called a miracle, Dwayne Jansen should have been dead.
But having survived horrific head injuries in a scooter accident, with doctors giving him virtually zero chance of pulling through, the Despatch teenager has succeeded in writing his matric exams and is now excitedly awaiting his results on Tuesday.
Through what is known as “heroic intervention” surgery, the 17-year-old had half his skull removed but has survived against all odds thanks to meticulous medical procedures. But, at one stage, he also suffered a serious setback.
It was also a constant bedside vigil by his grandmother for an entire month that his family believes kept up his dogged determination to live.
On January 14 2013, two days before the start of his matric year, Dwayne was on his way home on his scooter in Despatch at 9am.
“Nobody knows the details of the accident really, especially as Dwayne cannot remember anything,” his mother, Cheryl Jansen, said.
“We have heard a lot of stories. What we know is that there was a collision between him and a light truck in Amperbo Street.
“We don’t know if he didn’t fasten his helmet or what happened, but his helmet was found crushed in the street.
“I was at work when the phone call came.”
Dwayne was rushed to Cuyler Clinic with serious head injuries and then transferred to Greenacres Hospital for emergency surgery.
“Around midnight, Dr Sajid Ansari phoned to say he needed to remove a part of Dwayne’s skull as his brain was swelling.
“I didn’t understand everything he was explaining. I gave the phone to my husband, Ernst. I still told him: ‘Just say yes. They must save our Dwayne’.”
In medical circles this operation, known as a hemicraniectomy, is called a “heroic intervention”.
As far as could be ascertained, Dwayne’s surgery was the first of this nature undertaken in the Eastern Cape.
“The next day when we went to hospital our son was missing half of his skull. The nurses showed me where the doctors put it in a pouch in his abdomen for preservation.
“They said I must feel but I was too scared that I would hurt him.”
The following day, doctors told Dwayne’s parents that they doubted he would make it, but he fought to live.
For the next month his grandmother, Denise Jansen van Vuuren, sat by his bedside every day.
“I never doubted for a second that he would get better,” Jansen van Vuuren said. “When the spe- cialist told me he had a 5% chance to live I just said that nothing was impossible for God. I called on everyone to pray. I am so very proud of him today.
“That child has exceptional willpower,” she said.
Mom Cheryl said: “I think his grandmother’s love and care is a big reason why he pulled through.”
Dwayne underwent further surgery to fix his jaw which was broken in two places.
“When Dwayne left the ICU the nurses were all telling us that he was their miracle patient. He had a 5% chance to make it and he survived.”
The manager of Greenacres ICU, Jeanelle Loock, said Dwayne was their miracle patient. “He had such a small chance for survival but he held on and got better.
“We are all in awe of him going back to school last year.”
Dwayne was then transferred to Aurora Hospital for rehabilitation.
“I can only remember being in hospital for about two days before I went to Aurora. I asked the nurses why there were bones in my stomach.” Dwayne said. “I could still walk a little but I had to learn to do many other things.”
At Aurora they made him a helmet. “I didn’t want to wear it,” Dwayne said.
“His older brother, Jean-Pierre, thought the helmet was very ugly, and covered it in stickers,” Cheryl laughed.
In May 2013, Dwayne returned to hospital for his skull to be reconstructed with the bones stored in his abdomen.
But disaster struck, as the reconstructed skull became septic.
The Jansens no longer had medical aid and Ansari referred them to veteran neurosurgeon Dr Ian Copley at Livingstone Hospital.
“Dr Copley said he would have to remove the reconstructed skull,” Cheryl said.
“But they said they could make Dwayne a new one.
“He is still considering it. The surgery has its own risks and complications.
“For a long time Dwayne refused to let us take pictures of him. One day in the shops a cashier said it was very upsetting to see that parents would allow their child to have a haircut like that. Dwayne’s hair was shaved only in front.
“My husband then said it was his son that she was talking about and that if she looked closely she would see the stitches in his head. She didn’t know what to say.
“Then Dwayne started taking pictures of himself and became more comfortable.”
At present Dwayne has no bones in the front of his skull. He takes off his hat to show the bump in his head where the bones were removed.
“I am not scared that anything will happen,” he said.
After a year of rehabilitation he was determined at least to try and finish his matric year.
“Everybody said he would not be able to do it, but he was
determined,” Cheryl said. “I got terrible headaches when I studied a lot,” Dwayne said.
But he bravely sat for his matric exams and is now awaiting his results.
On most days Dwayne wears a baseball cap. “All I want to do now is to work,” he said. “I haven’t been on a scooter since the accident.”
Cheryl added: “We are so protective of him – his dad and his brother even more than I am.
“We are so very grateful for his life. Everybody at Greenacres was lovely and caring, and looked after Dwayne so well. The nurses really loved him.”
Cheryl said when police investigated the accident, Dwayne said he would admit it was his fault as he could not remember what happened.
“We haven’t done much investigation ourselves because getting Dwayne better was our priority.”
Psychologists treating Dwayne say he will probably never recover his memory of the time between the scooter crash and just before he went to Aurora.