A MAN has told how he ended up being DEAD for almost half an hour after visiting a friend for coffee.
Alan Curran, 54, popped by to see a work pal who was feeling sick at his Glasgow home in 2022.
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But he developed a bad cough and started feeling unwell just days later.
Alan, from the east end of the city, then took a turn for the worse.
The next thing he knew he woke up in Intensive Care THREE MONTHS later.
It was revealed the former courier had developed pneumonia and contracted sepsis.
He was raced to the Glasgow Royal Infirmary where medics desperately fought to keep him alive.
Alan suffered several heart attacks, kidney failure and at one point was in cardiac arrest for 28 minutes.
Doctors and nurses managed to bring Alan back from the brink of death and placed him in a medically induced coma.
Alan told how he spent 11 weeks fighting for his life and praised the heroic medics who saved his life.
He said: “I spent over 11 weeks in intensive care where I was in a critical condition and for the vast majority of that period, I was heavily sedated in an induced coma.
“My memory isn’t clear and most of the memories that I do have, are of severe delirium.
“I spent six and a half months in total in hospital and cannot thank the support of all the nurses, doctors and staff who helped me during my stay.
“I wouldn’t be here today if it wasn’t for the unbelievable treatment and care that the staff provided for me and I will be eternally grateful.”
Alan has now found a way to give back to the health service that kept him alive.
He was visited by hospital volunteers in the ward during his six-month stay in hospital.
“I wouldn’t be here today if it wasn’t for the unbelievable treatment and care”
Alan Curran
He said: “There were volunteers that would come to the ward, and I wasn’t really engaging at first as I had family and friends visiting regularly.”
“After a couple of visits, there was one particular woman who I really enjoyed her company and I used to look forward to her coming to visit, just to have a chat and a laugh. It helps to break up the monotony of a day and lifts your mood.”
Now he is giving back to people in recovery by becoming one of the volunteers who helped him, after one of the teams asked him to join up.
Alan said: “From my own experiences as a patient, I was invited to become a volunteer after attending the Inspire programme at the Intensive Care Unit at GRI in October.
‘NHS crucial in saving my life so I am giving back’
“I get a great deal of satisfaction from it, both in the way that I can help people, and it gives me purpose and something to look forward to during the week.”
He is now urging anyone who can to sign up as a volunteer to help people in hospital.
“I was always someone in the past who thought about volunteering, but I would put good intentions on the shelf and have the ‘I will do it later’.
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“NHSGGC was crucial in saving my life and I wanted to give something back. If I can do it, really anyone can.
“If you have even a small amount of spare time, there is a role you can fulfil, and I would encourage you to contact the volunteer service.”
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