Incheon Teacher in Coma: Plea for help!

[landry]

Hey everyone,

One of the greatest things about living and working in Korea is how much the expat community supports each other, especially in times of need. If you can take a few minutes of your time to learn about a terrible event that has happened in Incheon, and give whatever you can afford, even if its just 5000 won, it would be greatly appreciated.

Andrew Markle is an ESL teacher currently working in Incheon South Korea. He has recently slipped into a coma and this group was created to raise funds for his mounting health care costs and eventual return to Canada.

앤드류 마클은 현재 대한민국 인천의 공립학교에서 ESL 을 가르치는 선생님입니다. 현재 코마상태에 있는 앤드류 선생님을 위해, 엄청난 진료비와 고향으로 돌아갈 수 있는 여비를 모금하고 있습니다.


Andrew has been working as an ESL for the Incheon Metropolitan Office of Education since September of 2010. He was enjoying his time in Korea and had just renewed his contract for a second year. On Thursday December 1st he returned home from meeting some friends and spent the remainder of the evening in his apartment. Upon waking up on Friday morning, he was experiencing a severe headache and called his school to let him know he was ill and wouldn’t be in that day.

The pain was getting progressively worse and Andrew felt a bump on the back of his head. He decided to call Richard Brizan, a friend and fellow teacher in Incheon. Richard immediately headed over to Andrew’s apartment and seeing how much pain he was in, called a Korean co-teacher who then made a call to 911 emergency services.

Unfortunately, Andrew’s condition quickly deteriorated and he passed out. A CAT scan at the hospital revealed a fractured skull and a brain hemorrhage. They immediately performed brain surgery but unfortunately he slipped into a coma and has remained that way since then. According to doctors, the severity of his brain trauma is Level 4 (5 being the most severe) so he would have died if Richard had not gone to his home immediately

His parents travelled to Korea as soon as they heard the news and have been in Incheon waiting for him to recover and hopefully bring him back to Canada for further care.

It will be several weeks before the doctor will even consider letting him fly and even at that it would most likely be in a stretcher in which case he would need to be accompanied by a nurse. The costs incurred from the surgery and keeping Andrew in ICU are quickly mounting, not to mention the costs of flying him home. These costs will not be covered by his National Health Insurance.

Richard will be speaking about this situation at an upcoming meeting of Incheon teachers Friday December 16th and has been taking donations from fellow Incheon teachers.

We’re hoping to spread the word as much as possible about Andrew’s situation in the hopes of gathering further donations to support Paul and Pauline Markle with the escalating costs of Andrew’s care.

Please pass this link along to family and friends and donations of any amount would be much appreciated.

Currently, Richard Brizan is handling donations so any donations can be deposited in his account:

Korean Exchange Bank (KEB)
Account Name: Richard Anthony Brizan
Account# 620-199015-685

We will also be setting up a paypal account in the next day or two and we’ll post that information as well

Again, any support is much appreciated and please keep Andrew in your prayers,
Thank you
Shane Finnie, Canadian Connection
esl@canconx.com

2010년 9월, 앤드류 마클은 한국에 와서 인천교육청 소속으로 영어를 가르치는 교사가 되었습니다. 한국에서 지내는 시간이 너무나 즐거웠고 보람찼던 그는 1년이 지나자 재계약을 하게 됩니다. 변함없이 매일매일 학교에 가서 학생들을 가르칩니다.
2011년 12월 1일 목요일. 퇴근 후 친구들을 만나고 집으로 돌아갑니다.
다음날 아침, 앤드류는 심한 두통에 결국 학교에 전화하여 도저히 출근을 할 수 없다고 합니다. 두통은 점점 더 심해지고 앤드류는 뒷머리에 커다란 혹이 생긴 것 같다고 생각합니다.
견디다 못해 친구인 리차드 (리차드 또한 인천에서 근무하는 영어교사입니다)에게 전화를 겁니다. 상황이 심상치않음을 느낀 리차드는 바로 앤드류의 집으로 달려가고, 결국 한국인 협력교사와 함께 급히 119를 부릅니다.
앤드류의 상태는 걷잡을 수 없이 악화되고 완전히 의식을 잃게 됩니다.
CAT촬영결과 엄청난 양의 뇌출혈과 함께 두개골 골절이 발견되었고, 즉시 집도된 뇌수술에도 불구하고 앤드류의 의식은 아직도 돌아오지 않고 있습니다.
의사의 말로는 만일 리차드가 앤드류의 집으로 바로 가서 119를 부르지 않았다면, 아마 앤드류는 죽었을 거라고 하는군요. 위험수치가 4등급이었다고 합니다.(5가 최악이구요)

비보를 접하자마자 한국으로 날아간 앤드류의 부모님은 지금 인천에 머물면서 앤드류가 어서 깨어나 집으로 함께 돌아갈 수 있기를 간절히 기다리고 있습니다.
얼마나 더 기다려야 할 지…
깨어난다 하더라도 비행을 견딜 수 있다는 진단이 나와야 하고, 아마 들것에 실려 간호원이 동행해야 할 확률이 높다고 합니다. 뇌수술비와 더불어 중환자실 비용은 눈더미처럼 불어나고 있습니다.
국민건강보험에 가입이 되어있지만, 이런 사안에는 보험으로 충당되는 부분이 정말 작습니다.
병원으로 앤드류를 옮긴 친구 리차드는 12월 16일, 인천원어민영어교사 회의에서 동료교사들에게 현재 앤드류가 처한 상황을 알리고 도움을 요청하려고 합니다.
많은 사람들이 앤드류의 소식을 알았으면 좋겠습니다. 그래서 눈물과 염려로 기나긴 하루하루를 보내고 있는 앤드류의 부모님과 앤드류에게 작은 도움이나마 건네줄 수 있었으면 좋겠습니다.
현재 리차드의 계좌로 성금을 모집하고 있습니다.

외환은행 / 계좌인: Richard Anthony Brizan /계좌번호: 620-199015-685
곧 페이팔 계정도 알려드리겠습니다.

한국 속담에 ‘십시일반’이라는 말이 있습니다. 여러사람이 힘을 보태면 한사람을 돕기는 쉽다는 뜻입니다.
머나먼 타국에 와 젊은 패기와 열정으로 사랑하는 아이들을 가르치던 청년을 기억하시고,
아주 작은 마음이라도 부디 함께 해주시기를 부탁드립니다.

Facebook group:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/194462807312062/

[jackdaniels]

Hi,
  Sorry to hear about your friend.
Which hospital is he in?

[Frozencat99]

Perhaps we can have two topics 'stickied' to the top bar.

[K]

Hi,
  Sorry to hear about your friend.
Which hospital is he in?

He's currently at St Mary's Hospital located in Bupyeong.

http://maps.google.co.kr/maps?hl=ko&newwindow=1&client=firefox-a&hs=f6b&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&q=St+Mary%27s+hospital+Bupyeong&um=1&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.r_cp.,cf.osb&biw=1024&bih=630&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&tab=vl

[oculisorbis]

On Thursday December 1st he returned home from meeting some friends and spent the remainder of the evening in his apartment. Upon waking up on Friday morning, he was experiencing a severe headache and called his school to let him know he was ill and wouldn’t be in that day.

The pain was getting progressively worse and Andrew felt a bump on the back of his head. He decided to call Richard Brizan, a friend and fellow teacher in Incheon. Richard immediately headed over to Andrew’s apartment and seeing how much pain he was in, called a Korean co-teacher who then made a call to 911 emergency services.

Unfortunately, Andrew’s condition quickly deteriorated and he passed out. A CAT scan at the hospital revealed a fractured skull and a brain hemorrhage.

Youre leaving out a fairly significant portion of the story.  It is highly unlikely that he met some friends, went home and then just woke up with a fractured skull.  Why not tell the whole story, or at least the part about the circumstances that led to his injury, or are you worried that people wont donate if they knew?

[minamteacher]

On Thursday December 1st he returned home from meeting some friends and spent the remainder of the evening in his apartment. Upon waking up on Friday morning, he was experiencing a severe headache and called his school to let him know he was ill and wouldn’t be in that day.

The pain was getting progressively worse and Andrew felt a bump on the back of his head. He decided to call Richard Brizan, a friend and fellow teacher in Incheon. Richard immediately headed over to Andrew’s apartment and seeing how much pain he was in, called a Korean co-teacher who then made a call to 911 emergency services.

Unfortunately, Andrew’s condition quickly deteriorated and he passed out. A CAT scan at the hospital revealed a fractured skull and a brain hemorrhage.

Youre leaving out a fairly significant portion of the story.  It is highly unlikely that he met some friends, went home and then just woke up with a fractured skull.  Why not tell the whole story, or at least the part about the circumstances that led to his injury, or are you worried that people wont donate if they knew?

Oculisorbis, couldn't you post this in a private message to the OP? I mean their friend is in the hospital and you are implying that they are deceiving people.

[oculisorbis]

I'm not implying they are deceiving people - just asking why they are withholding, what would seem to me to be, the most important piece of information in a story of a tragedy.   If people are to give away their hard-earned money to someone they dont know, they deserve to at least have the whole story of why this person came to be in the condition that requires our charity.

[strawberry]

On Thursday December 1st he returned home from meeting some friends and spent the remainder of the evening in his apartment. Upon waking up on Friday morning, he was experiencing a severe headache and called his school to let him know he was ill and wouldn’t be in that day.

The pain was getting progressively worse and Andrew felt a bump on the back of his head. He decided to call Richard Brizan, a friend and fellow teacher in Incheon. Richard immediately headed over to Andrew’s apartment and seeing how much pain he was in, called a Korean co-teacher who then made a call to 911 emergency services.

Unfortunately, Andrew’s condition quickly deteriorated and he passed out. A CAT scan at the hospital revealed a fractured skull and a brain hemorrhage.

Youre leaving out a fairly significant portion of the story.  It is highly unlikely that he met some friends, went home and then just woke up with a fractured skull.  Why not tell the whole story, or at least the part about the circumstances that led to his injury, or are you worried that people wont donate if they knew?

Oculisorbis, couldn't you post this in a private message to the OP? I mean their friend is in the hospital and you are implying that they are deceiving people.

I'm not implying they are deceiving people - just asking why they are withholding, what would seem to me to be, the most important piece of information in a story of a tragedy.   If people are to give away their hard-earned money to someone they dont know, they deserve to at least have the whole story of why this person came to be in the condition that requires our charity.

I gotta say I agree... Not saying that they are deceiving, but these days it's fairly easy to be scammed.   Just like with the Michael Milne case, people (who wish to donate) would just like some information and have some facts checked before sending off their money.    "How did he get a fractured skull?!" was the first question that popped up in my mind too.  I don't think it's wrong to just ask for some facts..  If we don't have facts then I can write a post tomorrow saying "Hey guys, my friend has cancer and needs money."  Eventually no one will donate when it's a REAL emergency.  If this is legit, then of course people will donate.  Not being mean, just careful.

[merrypr4nkster]

On Thursday December 1st he returned home from meeting some friends and spent the remainder of the evening in his apartment. Upon waking up on Friday morning, he was experiencing a severe headache and called his school to let him know he was ill and wouldn’t be in that day.

The pain was getting progressively worse and Andrew felt a bump on the back of his head. He decided to call Richard Brizan, a friend and fellow teacher in Incheon. Richard immediately headed over to Andrew’s apartment and seeing how much pain he was in, called a Korean co-teacher who then made a call to 911 emergency services.

Unfortunately, Andrew’s condition quickly deteriorated and he passed out. A CAT scan at the hospital revealed a fractured skull and a brain hemorrhage.

Youre leaving out a fairly significant portion of the story.  It is highly unlikely that he met some friends, went home and then just woke up with a fractured skull.  Why not tell the whole story, or at least the part about the circumstances that led to his injury, or are you worried that people wont donate if they knew?

Oculisorbis, couldn't you post this in a private message to the OP? I mean their friend is in the hospital and you are implying that they are deceiving people.

I'm not implying they are deceiving people - just asking why they are withholding, what would seem to me to be, the most important piece of information in a story of a tragedy.   If people are to give away their hard-earned money to someone they dont know, they deserve to at least have the whole story of why this person came to be in the condition that requires our charity.

I gotta say I agree... Not saying that they are deceiving, but these days it's fairly easy to be scammed.   Just like with the Michael Milne case, people (who wish to donate) would just like some information and have some facts checked before sending off their money.    "How did he get a fractured skull?!" was the first question that popped up in my mind too.  I don't think it's wrong to just ask for some facts..  If we don't have facts then I can write a post tomorrow saying "Hey guys, my friend has cancer and needs money."  Eventually no one will donate when it's a REAL emergency.  If this is legit, then of course people will donate.  Not being mean, just careful.

Agreed, how did he get the fractured skull?

[ahnatiuk]

As one of Andrew's close friends, I'd just like to clarify for anyone implying that we are trying to decieve people or withhold any information.  I do understand how this may seem, but unfortunately, due to him being in a coma, even we are in the dark.  Any information that we know, has been provided in the original post.

As explained in the original post, Andrew called a friend (Richard Brizan) saying that he had a lump on his head (from what, even we are unsure), which led to him being brought to the hospital.  We are unable to fully explain what has happened because we have not been able to ask him. 

I do understand that there are many questions that people have before donating, but I, along with all of his friends can assure you, this is in no way a scam.  All we would like is to assist his parents in footing the massive bill they are about to encounter.  You can private message me any questions that you have, and I can try to answer them as best I can, but as I said before, we aren't completely sure of details, because we haven't been able to speak to him and ask what has happened. 

Below are the facebook groups/events that have been created to assist as well.  I have also sent the links to teachers at my previous school in hopes that they can circulate it around to their school/other schools in their board. 

http://www.facebook.com/#!/groups/194462807312062/

http://www.facebook.com/#!/events/273145162733406/

[wahs]

heavy drinking or not... is that really a reason to deny someone their life?
People are in hospitals for various reasons that could have been avoided, (obesity, smoking, drinking, the list goes on), and are still treated.
Hardly fair to let someone die because of a mistake.

Obviously I don't know all the facts, I just hope people aren't that crewl.

[strawberry]

Thanks ahnatiuk! this is actually helpful

[Yu_Bumsuk]

+1 for clarity.

If he fractured it in a night of heavy drinking...  Should we really be donating money?

I still would. We've all done stupid things. I recently donated several days' wages to a guy who may not have needed a liver transplant if he'd drunk less when he was younger. Of maybe his liver failed for some other reason. I don't know and it doesn't make any difference. He needs help and I can help him. The same goes for someone who may have fractured his skull in a bar fight or fallen down the stairs when plastered or been hit by a bus in a crosswalk. However, it still would be nice to know the full story.

[strawberry]

heavy drinking or not... is that really a reason to deny someone their life?
People are in hospitals for various reasons that could have been avoided, (obesity, smoking, drinking, the list goes on), and are still treated.
Hardly fair to let someone die because of a mistake.

Obviously I don't know all the facts, I just hope people aren't that crewl.

Agreed!  Personally I don't care how he got hurt (I DO wonder though) but the facts just make it less of a scam So thanks!

[dmhr25]

For anyone questioning the legitimacy of this - please know that this is all true.  Andrew was in my orientation 1.5 years ago.  He's a wonderful person.  I don't know the specifics of how his injury happened, but I do know for a fact that he is in the hospital, in a coma.  It was even discussed at our IMOE Winter Training.

I can absolutely appreciate people being wary about this being a scam - but I can assure you, it is not. 

[brizan]

I just want to start by saying thank you ahnatiuk.

My name is Richard Brizan and I am the one who came to Andrew's aid on that morning.  I was with him the night before as well.  We had a couple drinks and then both went home.  By far from being intoxicated.  I can also verify that from security camera feeds he entered his apartment alone and didn't leave at any point that night until I arrived that morning and the ambulance arrived. 

We still to this day have no idea what the cause is.  When I got to his apartment he had a large lump on his head and didn't know what caused it.  He was in bed and was in intense pain and starting losing consciousness while we were in the ambulance.  I thank god that he phoned me and I made it there in time.  It's believed that he must have slipped in his apartment, hit his head, and forgot.  We really won't know until he wakes up.  Assuming that he will even remember...

I really didn't think I would have to be defending my best friend and watch his story turned into gossip on waygook. I just became aware of this thread as it was originally posted by a mutual friend wanting to help.  I hope that this thread will turn positive for the sake of Andrew and his family.  It is by far anything from a scam.
If you have any questions regarding the situation or donations then please don't hesitate to contact me. 
But it kills me to be at the hospital everyday after school to find out that this whole thing has turned into gossip on the internet.  I really don't want his family to think that Andrew is being talked about like this and have to deal with any stress related to that.

Again, to all those legitimately concerned, feel free to contact me!  I want to absorb as much burden as I can for his family.
We only recently started asking for donations.  It was something that his parents hated having to resort to and didn't even ask us to do it.  But staying in the ICU, being on and off dialysis, etc. really racks up.  Medical only covers so much.  Plus the flight back to Canada is going to be very hefty.  They are already dealing with the trauma of their son laying in a hospital bed unconscious, not knowing when he'll wake up, and when he does not knowing the extent of the brain damage.  Financial costs should be the furthest from their minds, but sadly, that isn't how reality works.

So if you are kind enough to donate then it would be appreciated and I would thank you from the bottom of my heart!
But if you are on here just to gossip and have no interest in helping out a fellow Native Teacher then please don't even bother to comment.


Thank you for your time,
Rich.

[Yu_Bumsuk]

Thanks for that clarification, Rich. I think 'speculating' might be a better choice of words than 'gossiping'. I think the way the OP was written it could only lead to people speculating. It is a very unusual situation to say the least.

Do you have any estimation of what the out-of-pocket expenses will be for Andrew and his parents? How much is covered by his health care plan? It will be easier to fundraise if you can put it into terms like 'If 200 people could donate W50,000 each...'. I'll try to drop by the bank later this week.

[strawberry]

Thanks Rich!  That's all I needed to hear I hope my posts didn't offend you - was definitely not gossiping, but I'm sure you can understand us being weary of just sending money.  Thanks, will go to the bank sometime this week.

[EllaRing]

Getting paid on Friday. I'll definitely send something then. 
We've been rooting for Michael and we're just as ready to put our money and positive energy out there for Andrew too!!!

[peasgoodnonsuch]

+1 for clarity.

If he fractured it in a night of heavy drinking...  Should we really be donating money?

Are you God? If you're not (I'm assuming you're not) then you have no right to ask this question. 

To the OP and Andrew's friends:

Thank you for posting this and letting people know as many details as you have. I am so sorry such an incredibly awful thing has happened to your friend and I will keep him in my prayers. I'm sorry your feelings have been hurt by people's comments or questions. However, I think it's important to try to step back from the sensitive state of your emotions and look at this from the perspective of strangers, living a world full of dishonesty. Part of working with charity and asking for donations is learning how to politely and clearly disseminate information and clear up doubts. I think most of the questioning comments left here were out of genuine desire for knowledge, not ill intent or gossip. If you are only able to give partial information, of course people will try to speculate the parts that are missing.  It's hard, but if you let your emotions control your response to people you'll alienate potential donors to your cause. I'm not saying that to criticize you, just trying to give some helpful advice.

I hope that you can remain patient and hopeful as this donation drive begins. Please be mindful that the season is unfortunately a time when people are usually short on funds due to the holidays and numerous charities pushing their holiday donation campaigns. It may take a bit of time, but I'm sure donations will pick up once people get their next paychecks and the word gets spread around. I know in my case at least, I'll need to wait until mid-january before I can give anything more to anyone. Also, have you contacted the head of this site, Arsalan with a PM to make him aware? If he puts his stamp of confirmation on all of this, you'll be sure to get more donations. Best wishes to Andew and your fundraising!