Hospital switch raises hopes for teacher in coma

The father of a Yorkshire teacher who was left in a coma after being brutally assaulted in Thailand has spoken of his hopes for his son’s recovery as his alleged attacker appears in court again today.

Adam Pickles, 40, from Keighley, was living in Pattaya when he was viciously beaten, allegedly with a metal bar, on his way home from a night out last May.

After lifesaving brain surgery, the father-of-one was airlifted to Leeds General Infirmary, where he remains in a coma.

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Now he is set to be transferred to a specialist neuro-rehabilitation centre in Putney, London, where his family hopes the slow progress he is making will be accelerated.

His father Andrew, 63, said he and his wife Adele, 62, had been given a glimmer of hope by their music-loving son’s response to a guitar his friends bought for him.

“We put it in his hands and he recognised it was there. He was aware he could feel the strings,” he said.

“That was a great evening. The nurses came in to watch and there were lots of smiles.

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“It only lasted about 15 minutes and then the occupational therapists got similar responses a couple of days later but we haven’t been able to repeat it since, unfortunately, although we keep trying.

“It was a little glimmer of returning consciousness.

“It was really exciting to watch but in the big picture it was a tiny step – but an important one.”

The parents hope the specialist care at the Royal Hospital for Neuro-Disability – which includes music, voice and drama therapy –will aid further improvements.

“Those are the things he loves and was interested in so we hope that there will be a connection there,” said Andrew.

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“They have specialist teams there to give occupational therapy and physiotherapy and it was recommended to us by the occupational therapists at Leeds as being the best place to give him the best chance to come forward.”

The move will be a wrench for the couple, of Thorner, Leeds, who have been at their son’s bedside every day since the attack, and will now no longer be able to visit as regularly.

“We are hoping to be there when he is transferred, to help him settle in, and then go down for two to three days once a fortnight,” said Andrew.

“It is going to be a big change but we’ve visited the hospital and we believe he’ll be in good hands and it’s the right place for him.

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“We’re just hoping when he has specialist focus on him it will help things to move forward faster.

“Fortunately Adam has a lot of friends in London. He worked there for quite some time, so they have assured us he won’t be short of visitors.”

The couple also have the ongoing legal proceedings in Thailand – where Adam’s son Benjamin, one, lives with his mother, Pafan – to deal with.

Sean Henry Tinsley, from Wolverhampton, is due to appear in court in Pattaya today, when it is expected a trial date may be set.

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The 43-year-old, who is on bail, has already pleaded not guilty to attempted murder.

He is alleged to have followed Adam and attacked him with a wheel brace after the former Wakefield Cathedral School teacher scraped his car as he left the Paradise Bar in Soi Khao Noi, where he had been playing pool.

The family has had to find money to cover the legal costs of fighting the case on top of the bill for Adam’s Thai hospital care and medical repatriation, which topped £120,000.

With his health insurance covering less than eight per cent of the bill, Andrew and Adele were forced to remortgage their home and Adam’s family and friends around the world have so far raised more than £90,000 to help.

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“As a family we’d be in a disastrous position now if that hadn’t taken place,” said Andrew.

“I don’t know where we would have been able to find that money from. It would have created a bleak future for us and for Adam.”

Fundraising efforts are continuing. To help, visit www.donatetoadam.org.