Progress update #3: Queensland burns victim and celebrity chef,Matt Golinski

Matt Golinski (39) continues to make slow progress as a result of the horrific burns he sustained in a home fire that claimed the lives of his wife and three children on Boxing Day 2011.

Mr Golinski remains in a heavily sedated state at the Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital,  however his condition has been downgraded from ‘critical’ to ‘serious’.    

Mr Golinski is not yet able to speak and is still undergoing bouts of surgery but Matt’s father, Keith Golinski said that there had been some encouraging signs regarding his son’s progress.

“Although Matt remains heavily sedated, he is now mainly breathing on his own, his burns are healing well and there have been some small breakthroughs in his recovery such as Matt responding physically to requests posed by medical staff and family, Keith said.

“As his level of sedation is still quite high, and he cannot yet speak it remains unclear as to whether Matt is fully aware of what is happening but it’s definitely progress in the right direction.”

Keith said that he appreciated the ongoing level of interest and concern for Matt’s health but had learned that there were no “hard or fast rules” when it came to people emerging from medically induced comas or recovering from serious burns.

“It is quite logical to think that once a patient’s sedation levels are lowered that a person might just wake up and start communicating immediately, but this is not the case.”

“The hospital’s medical team has informed us that for each person it is very different - it could take one week or several weeks before the effects of the drugs and general disorientation to fully subside and for Matt to be in a state that most people would define as ‘awake’.  

Keith said that the family had not yet been able to determine whether Matt had any memories of the fire or was aware that his wife and children had perished in the blaze.  

“For obvious reasons we are being very cautious and working closely with the hospital team to ensure that Matt’s recovery is managed at a pace that Matt himself can handle.”

Keith said that Rachael and Matt’s families were continuing to draw strength from the support of family and friends.

Donations for the official Matt (Matthew) Golinski Recovery Fund Trust can be made over the counter at any ANZ Bank or by direct deposit to:  Account name: Matthew Golinski Recovery Fund Trust.  Bank: ANZ.  BSB: 014 672 Account number: 263 331 805

Permanent Link: Progress update #3: Queensland burns victim and celebrity chef,Matt Golinski
Publish Date: 20 Feb 12

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