Patient thanks amputee unit for keeping Antarctica dream alive

A patient whose leg was amputated following a serious motorcycle crash in South America has paid tribute to rehabilitation unit staff for keeping his hopes alive of biking to Antarctica. 

Luke Tarrant, 28, who recently appeared in an episode of BBC Gardeners’ World about Guy’s and St Thomas’ Amputee Rehabilitation Unit’s award-winning garden, credits the staff at the unit with getting him back on his feet. He says their care has rekindled his dream of completing his challenge of travelling across three continents.
 
Luke, a former investment banker from Hackney, had been travelling for 9 months by motorbike across North America, Central America and South America when the accident happened in Colombia in June this year. 
 
He has no memory of the crash and spent a traumatic month in hospital in Medellín, first having his left leg amputated and then being treated for sepsis in the Colombian hospital’s intensive care and critical care units. He was eventually airlifted to hospital in the UK before moving to Guy’s and St Thomas’ Amputee Rehabilitation Unit (ARU), where he has taken his first steps towards greater independence.
 
Luke, who was at the ARU for 6 weeks from July, said: “Things started to improve from the moment I managed to get to that centre. It really is a good place. Within 3 weeks of being there you’re taking your first steps on a prosthetic leg.
 
“It’s so nice to be able to move again. Just the stretch you get after being sat down in a bed and a wheelchair for so long. Reclaiming some life back, that’s the best part. 
 
“The staff make the place – the nurses are so warm, looking after you in a caring way and the physios who are getting you up walking again. They are a sort of landing pad for people who have had a severe injury or illness, and they very quickly give you a bit of hope for a new lease of life, and allow you to actually make plans for the future. Because I’ve had that time in the rehab centre I can see a way forward. It gives you hope and a bit of purpose.” 
 
Luke, who now receives long-term care from another prosthetic rehabilitation unit, said: “In my mind I want to get to a better standard of walking, and it’s going to take a bit of time to get properly active on the prosthetic leg. But once that’s happened, I’m exploring disability sports opportunities, and eventually I’d like to finish off my motorbike trip, which I crashed on. I want to get to Colombia and all the way down to the bottom to Antarctica where I was planning on finishing before.”
 
Guy’s and St Thomas’ Amputee Rehabilitation Unit in Lambeth, south London provides intensive physical rehabilitation, specialist wound care and counselling services to around 100 patients each year to help them become independent. 
 
Although patients have different individual needs, many start by learning how to move safely without a prosthesis. Those who meet the criteria move on to having a prosthetic limb made and learn how to walk using this with the support of the physiotherapists. They progress to being in the kitchen and outdoors and are encouraged to use the prosthesis on the ward to do everyday activities. 
 
The unit is made up of a team of physiotherapists and occupational therapists (who support patients to engage in meaningful tasks after an injury or illness), prosthetic specialists (who improve people's mobility by creating and fitting limb replacements), a counselling team, rehabilitation nurses, and pharmacists and doctors. The garden, which is led by gardener and rehabilitation assistant Joe Scoble, was made possible thanks to support from Guy’s & St Thomas’ Charity.
 
Fred Watson, clinical director for therapies and rehabilitation at Guy’s and St Thomas’, said: “We are very proud of the progress Luke has made while with us at the unit. Every member of our team at the Amputee Rehabilitation Unit play a vital role in supporting our patients, so they can go on to live the most independent and fulfilling life possible.