MANGALURU: Yogish Shetty, who was a regular at the gym once, is completely
bed-ridden
after a major
accident left his spinal cord damaged 14 years ago. However, he kept his hopes high in the face of adversity. Now,
Yuvana Trust
, an NGO working for treatment of the poor, has come forward to lend a helping hand to him.
Yogish, 35, a resident of Ranipura in Ullal, had met with an accident in Mumbai when he was 21.
The spinal cord injury not only left his legs paralyzed, but also restricted the movement of his arms. His relatives and friends left no stone unturned to give him a new lease of life. After 14 years, Yuvana Trust has now taken up Yogish’s case as a challenge.
Namitha Shyam, founder president of the trust, told TOI that the trust members have decided to help him till he is able to work from a wheelchair.
“Many organizations helped him initially, but now he is helpless. Hence, we took Yogish to the First Neuro Brain & Spine Super Speciality Hospital in Padil in the city. Neurologists at the hospital said that it is unlikely he will be his old self. However, doctors gave us hope that with advanced treatment Yogish can use a wheelchair. We got an appointment with a specialist neurologist from US, Dr Ganesh Bavikatte in the first week of January through First Neuro. Dr Ganesh, who hails from Puttur, visited Yogish and promised to visit again within a year,” Namitha said. Yogish’s mother too is suffering from age-related issues, she said.
Yogish, who used to sweat it out in gyms before he met with an accident, is confident that he will regain mobility of his legs and hands. According to doctors, regular physiotherapy is compulsory and later he can be given an automated wheelchair. He will be brought to the hospital again in February for physiotherapy, she said.
“The doctors have assured us that Yogish can work as a receptionist or do some similar job once treatment is over. It is not an immediate process and it may take at least a year to complete the treatment. We have decided to follow up Yogish’s case by giving him all the support. It may cost us lakhs to procure an automated wheelchair for him. We have no fixed funds in our trust, but we are hopeful of getting sufficient funds through donors, she said.
Yuvana Trust was formed in August 2016 and it has done several charity services including adoption of poor school children, she added.