A Tragic Cycling Event
In 2022 Dr Mohammed Belal, a Urology Consultant Surgeon was involved in a cycling accident caused by an unavoidable falling tree leaving him paralysed from the waist down with serious spinal and other injuries.
Following eight months in hospital, undergoing a number of operations, the time to focus on dedicated rehabilitation finally came and he chose the Royal Bucks.
Whilst we naturally have consultants working in our rehab centre, seeing one arriving as a patient was unusual. The calm determination well suited to Mohammed’s medical role continued to serve him well as he recovered.
Resilience And Determination
From the outset, our team knew they had a patient who accepted what had happened, yet was able to push hard to build a different future, one which meant he could still pursue a profession he cared about deeply.
Over 1,000 hours of therapy followed, working with a range of specialist staff. The time to return to work approached and was well planned. We should let our patient’s own words describe this:
“It’s through Royal Bucks that we trialled all the different wheelchairs and found a bespoke wheelchair that allowed me to get back into doing what I love, which is being a surgeon and helping others.
As well as helping me find what the best equipment was, they were amazing. The Royal Bucks tailored my individual return to work and they kindly agreed to come with myself to my own hospital, to my own theatre, with the equipment I was going to use to optimise my time there.
We went through the whole aspect of using the standing wheelchair and all the potential positions needed for surgery, how to scrub up, how to descrub, how to stand. They gave me the confidence to go back to surgery, without fear of any problems.”
Into The Future
Mohammed was quick to express his gratitude to our team. Everyone at the Royal Bucks feels privileged to have supported him on his journey and is immensely proud of his achievements.
As the first surgeon in the UK to perform an operation after being paralysed, Mohammed’s story continues to inspire other patients, with his determination, patience and hope. He has returned for further therapy to complement his rehabilitation at home.
Alongside significant improvement in other areas, Mohammed’s left leg has recovered to a degree. He is still reliant on a wheelchair but has rebuilt his life in an extraordinary way, being one of only a few surgeons carrying out surgery in a wheelchair.