Help Patrick
Friends of Paddy will know he had a tough time over the last year, but recently he'd got back on his feet, found a good job & started smiling again. Then on 22 November he had a motorbike accident in Saigon which resulted in internal bleeding, and he was hospitalised and underwent surgery. He is now recovering in Cho Ray hospital, Saigon.
What He Needs
There is no free healthcare in Vietnam and even in local hospitals like Cho Ray, treatment can be expensive. As well as the cost of the operation, Paddy's in-patient care is costing around US$50 per day. Also at this stage we don't know how long it'll be before Paddy goes back to work, and as an English teacher he's paid by the hour - if he doesn't work, he doesn't get paid.
His friends in Saigon have chipped in already and are also spending time with him in hospital - in Vietnamese hospitals it's down to friends & family to care for patients' non-medical needs.
In short we have no idea how much his hospitalisation will cost in total nor how long it'll be before he can return to work. So any donations from Paddy's friends will be a big help to him. I've set a target of $2000 in total but I'm sure noone will object if we exceed this.
Other Ways You Can Help
As I said above, Vietnamese hospitals just offer medical treatment. The rest of the patient's care - washing, food and so on - is the responsibility of friends & family. So if you're in Saigon, you can really help by going to the hospital & spending some time with Paddy, even if it's just to say hi & cheer him up or take him some books & magazines.