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A Skiing Accident in Alberta, Canada

How we helped when this nomad got injured in Canada

While skiing at the Sunshine Village resort in Canada, I caught an edge lost control and skiied into a boulder. On impact with the rock I injured both my arms, chipped some teeth and lacerated and fractued part of my jaw. When the medics came to assist me they decided to take the precaution of the ambulance, due to a suspected head injury.

The doctor at the hospital took x-rays of both arms, my head and neck and determined that both wrists and my jaw were broken. He put me in casts gave me pain killers and had someone sowed up the cut on my jaw. I was given a prescription for pain killers and instructions to have my stiches removed in 6 days and come back for a re-assesment of my left arm in 10 days. I then had to see a dentist about the damage to my teeth. In the accident I had severed my back left molar as well as deep chips to three other teeth. The Dentist decided to remove the molar as so much of it was damaged and filled the other teeth. This work took two visits.

On the 16th of December I had to go back to the emergency ward prematurely as my right hand had swollen up so much my fingers were turning blue. Here the Doctor re-cast and re x-rayed my arm so I asked her to take a look at my right thumb as it was causing me considerable pain. She had the x-ray report faxed through to her from the Mineral Springs Hospital but the report stated that there were no abnormalities with either wrist. She removed both casts and concluded that it was probably just very badly sprained. I found my right thumb was in severe pain so on the 21st of December I went back to the Mineral Springs Hospital again and here my right arm was re-x-rayed once again. This time the Doctor concluded I had broken my scaphoid. He wanted me to see a hand specialist but there was no one in Banff at this time. He spoke to a hand specialist in Calgary who said I should come to Calgary immediately to have my thumb looked at.

On the 22nd of December I travelled to Calgary to see Dr Mackenzie who decided to do a MRI of my hand. This image showed that my scaphoid bone was split and crushed. The Doctor put me in a new cast and refered me to a Banff Doctor to see several weeks later. On the 11th of January I saw Dr Sinclair at the Banff Mineral Springs to have my hand reviewed. He x-rayed the area and has left me with some hand exercises and a wait and see verdict.

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