A YOUNG Melbourne couple is facing months stuck in a Thailand hospital after a celebratory holiday ended in disaster.
Troy Markides and his girlfriend Katie Van der End were badly injured in a scooter accident in Kho Phangan last week with Mr Markides needing emergency surgery to save his mangled leg.
The 29-year-old dislocated his knee, tore three ligaments and crushed the main artery in his leg.
The couple were ferried between six hospitals before Mr Markides was finally operated on, 26 hours later.
“The doctor came in and told us that they may have to amputate his leg in surgery,” Ms Van der End told the Herald Sun.
“It was the first time he had heard that … he just burst into tears, it was horrible,” the 21-year-old paramedic student said.
Despite having travel insurance, Ms Van der End said the company has refused to cover the mounting medical costs for Mr Markides’ treatment and those associated with flying him home.
“We were told that Troy wouldn’t be covered because the scooter was classified as a motorbike and they weren’t covered in our policy,” she said.
“It doesn’t make sense … but right now our priority is getting Troy home safely,” she said.
Mr Markides, who celebrated his 29th birthday in the hot, “filthy” hospital bed he has been confined to since the accident, has open wounds from his multiple surgeries and is at constant risk of infection.
Because of the severity of his injuries his leg has been placed in a metal brace with rods screwed into the bones to stabilise it.
“He’s in a world of pain and we just need to get him out of there,” Ms Van der End said.
In order to keep Troy’s leg straight on the flight home, he needs to be flown out by stretcher which will cost tens of thousands of dollars.
Ms Van der End said the other option is having to wait in Thailand for his leg to stabilise enough to be operated on again which could take up to four months.
Ms Van der End warned others travelling overseas to check their insurance policies before hopping on a scooter.
“We weren’t doing anything silly, we hadn’t been drinking, we just went for a drive and then this happened,” she said.
“Troy trying to be strong on the outside but he just wants to get home.”
The couple’s family has set-up a fundraising page to help pay for Mr Markides to flight home.
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