Michael and Kathy having a good time around the pool before his accident.
MICHAEL and Kathy were just four days into an idyllic Balinese holiday when they decided to head to their hotel pool to relax.
The couple from the NSW South Coast didn’t realise this simple trip would be the moment their holiday would turn into a nightmare.
“I had jumped in the pool and Michael was reading on the deckchair for a good 20 minutes and I got out to sit down next to him,” Kathy tells news.com.au.
“That’s when the back of his deckchair collapsed.”
They thought nothing of it until later in the day, when he started experiencing some pain in his neck.
Like many Australians do when holidaying in a foreign country, they decided to self-medicate.
“We got out the medical kit and took anti-inflammatories, we thought it was muscular and didn’t think much about it,” she said.
But after the 48-year-old experienced a bad night’s sleep they decided to seek a doctor. Upon doctor’s orders, the next morning the pair checked out of their hotel and went to a local hospital.
“They put a neck brace on him and then the saga began.”
Michael had a fractured cervical spine — a very serious injury that has the potential of becoming a permanent disability.
“The neurosurgeon said it was like having whip lash,” Kathy said. “It was just a freaky thing that happened.”
Not the Bali holiday that one imagines.Source:Supplied
As a reminder for other Aussie travellers, Kathy said if they hadn’t taken out insurance they would have found themselves more than $13,000 out of pocket in medical costs.
“Staff at the hospital began quoting us figures — $200 for this, $700 for that,” she said.
After contacting their insurer, TID, the couple was flown back to Australia in business class.
Once on home soil, Michael was admitted to hospital where he had an operation. The outcome was six weeks in a brace and spinal surgery but he still doesn’t have full function in his hand.
Surprisingly, the scary experience did not dampen the couple’s love for Bali.
“I’ve been going to Bali since I was 18 and we have a love for the place — it’s not Bali’s fault, it could have happened anywhere,” Kathy said.
It’s hard not to love Bali.Source:Supplied
Travel safety expert at online travel insurer TID Phil Sylvester says it’s alarming to see the number of claims his company receives from travellers who have tripped or fallen.
“It doesn’t fill you with confidence for the state of Balinese roads and footpaths,” he said. “Sprained ankles, deep cuts, severe bruising, even head injuries from Aussies who’ve fallen down a pothole or tripped on an uneven footpath are one of our most common injury claim types.”
But food poisoning or gastro problems are the most common reason for insurance claims from Aussie travellers in Bali, he said.
“Indonesian food is great but everyone knows someone who’s had a bad case of Bali belly,” he said.
“It usually isn’t life-threatening, but it will put a serious dampener on your holiday fun.”
Continue the conversation on Twitter @newscomauHQ | @LeahMcLennan
The Mulia in Bali is known as one of the most luxurious travel destinations in the world.
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