PORTLAND, Ore. — A Vancouver family is fighting to bring their 71-year-old mother back home after she had an unexpected medical emergency abroad. Diana James is now in a coma after suffering a subdural hematoma, or bleeding inside the brain, on the second day of her trip to Portugal.
Her family said it will cost them a quarter of a million dollars to get her medically transported back to Washington.
"We can just hope that she recovers as best as she can and we can get her home," said Megan Kunze, Diana’s daughter. "So within 24 hours of her getting here, she suffered that and didn't even get to enjoy really any of her vacation. And my brother and I flew out within 48 hours and we've been with her ever since."
Kunze said her mother had mentioned a headache when she got off the plane in Portugal but was determined not to waste a minute of her trip. But everything changed after she lost consciousness during an art class in the park and was rushed into emergency surgery.
"They performed a craniotomy on her, so they removed part of her skull to relieve the pressure inside of her brain and evacuated her hematoma," Kunze said.
Diana then went into a coma; no one knows how long that could last.
"On a coma scale, three being the worst and 15 being an equivalent of you and I having this conversation, she was at a four," Kunze said. "So she was very comatose when we got here — she was not responsive. And I would say three to four days after we got here, she started showing signs and started responding to us."
Now they’re left with the bill to get her back home after not purchasing travel medical insurance — something they now regret.
"We have never traveled outside of the U.S. other than to Canada and we didn’t realize travel medical insurance was an option or that it would cover something like this," Kunze said.
Marie Dodds, a spokesperson with AAA Oregon, said this is something they see often: medical emergencies abroad when traveling.
Dodds said health insurance plans typically provide coverage while traveling within the U.S. But often that's not the case while traveling internationally.
"Travel medical insurance tends to catch people by surprise, because when you travel, you don’t expect to fall and break your arm and need emergency medical help. But these types of things happen all the time," Dodds said. "If you are traveling abroad, the first thing you want to do is get in touch with your health insurance provider, explain to them where you're going, tell them what country you're visiting and ask whether you will be covered. If you are not covered, it is a really good idea to invest in travel medical insurance."
Kunze said her mother has started to open her eyes, but adds she still has months, if not years left of recovery, and they're hoping to do that all back home in Vancouver.
"I feel like she recognized who I was — which for my brother and I [it was a] very blessed moment that gave us hope that she is going to be OK," she said.
As summer travel season heats up, Diana's family hopes their experience can serve to educate others regarding the benefits of travel insurance, especially for those with chronic health issues.
The family is asking for the community's help to get their mother home. They have created a GoFundMe and a donation account at Columbia Credit Union under "Bring Diana James Home."