Cindy Rowan said she was a big ball of nerves as she stood by her son’s side as he was being transported back home by air ambulance to Edmonton from a hospital in the Dominican Republic on Sunday.
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But she can breathe a little easier now that her son Chase Delorme-Rowan is continuing his recovery at the University of Alberta intensive care unit after being brutally attacked by a fellow Canadian man at a resort bar in Punta Cana while on a family vacation that left her son fighting for his life.
“He was moving his toes on the plane. He hadn’t been able to move his lower limbs until last night,” said Rowan, who landed in Edmonton with her son at midnight after a very long travel day that had stops in Fort Lauderdale and Chicago before landing in Edmonton.
“He’s still under sedation, but he knows we’re there. He reacts to my voice. It’s such a nice feeling.
“The flight home was very long and exhausting. But I’m just so happy he’s home and they were able to get him into the U of A (hospital).”
Her son’s skull was cracked from the front of his forehead to the back of his neck. Doctors in the Dominican Republic had to perform surgery to remove a blood clot the size of a grapefruit and remove part of his skull.
A man from Nova Scotia was charged on Jan.20 in relation to the Jan. 14 attack on Delorme-Rowan.
Delorme-Rowan’s alleged attacker, Kyle Stephen Denny, 34, has a history of violence, according to court reports.
Denny’s bail was posted at US$16,000 and he can’t leave the country.
Rowan said doctors attempted to wake her son up before they left the Dominican Republic on Sunday. But when they boarded the plane, she said the two doctors on the flight said he still needed to be under sedation.
“I also learned from the doctors on the flight that he still had pneumonia, and the doctor (in hospital) originally told me he didn’t have pneumonia anymore,” said Rowan.
“They currently have him quarantined at the hospital here in Edmonton. I don’t know how long that will be.”
Doctors weren’t able to provide her with any type of update on a recovery plan when her son arrived at the U of A hospital after midnight on Monday, .
Rowan went back to the U of A hospital with her two sons late Monday morning to check on her son’s status and visit him. She told Postmedia that doctors were still running Delorme-Rowan through a series of tests.
Delorme-Rowan’s stay in hospital in the Dominican Republic was long and costly. Thankfully, the family had travel insurance through their personal insurance. Despite having $250,000 in coverage, Rowan is still unsure if it will cover all the medical costs until she gets her final bill from the flight back to Canada, estimated to be in the range of $100,000.
A GoFundMe account started for the family had more than $55,000 in it Monday.
“His time in hospital was more than US$113,000. We calculated it, and it will be over $160,000 Canadian
“My insurance called me this morning and asked me if I have any questions, and I’m sure they’re going to send me the (final) bill, and hopefully, we don’t owe them any money.”
Rowan said the support she’s received from friends, family and even strangers is tremendous.
“I’m getting lots of phone calls, and friends texting me, letting me know they’re there if I need any help. We have lots of people who want to help us,” said Rowan.
Until doctors can provide her with a path to recovery for her son, she won’t know what the future holds for her son.
“We’re hoping there won’t have to be any more surgeries. All the swelling has gone down, and (doctors in the Dominican Republic) were able to put his skull back together,” said Rowan.
“He’s making strides. Him moving (his feet and legs) are a good sign. Up until yesterday, I hadn’t seen his feet move. It was amazing.”
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