PUBLIC WORKOUT: Today Show's Lester Holt, physical therapist Kathleen Bobo and cameraman observe Derek Ashworth's workout. RHCI Photos by Joye Creedon
Derek Ashworth of Acushnet is a national celebrity. But he'd just as soon have passed on the recognition. The good news, however, is that he is alive to enjoy the moment…and many more to come.
On August 11, within a span of hours, the 23-year-old part-time football player with the semi-pro Middleboro Cobras suffered a pair of seizures. His right side then became paralyzed and he lost the ability to speak coherently. When admitted to Boston Medical Center he had a raging fever of 106 degrees and had slipped into a coma.
Tests quickly confirmed a diagnosis of Eastern Equine Encephalitis, or "Triple E," a potentially fatal disease that as of this writing has been responsible for two area deaths, one a nine-year-old Middleboro boy.
His youth and fitness as an athlete, along with the ministrations of the staff at Boston Medical, helped Derek through the critical early stages. Two weeks later, his condition stabilized, he was transferred to the Brain Injury Program at the Rehabilitation Hospital of the Cape and Islands in Sandwich. That's where his physical comeback began.
On September 8, four weeks after admittance to RHCI, accompanied by his parents and girlfriend, Derek walked out, well on his way to a full recovery.
Derek's experience has attracted regional and national media coverage.
Scott Ashworth, Derek's father and fire chief in the town of Rochester, felt a duty to educate the public about the threat of EEE. Following his son's diagnosis, he spoke to many local and regional reporters about the need for towns to take measures to control the mosquito population. Approached by the Today Show to tell his family's story, he recognized a way to educate a broad audience about the dangers of this deadly disease–and also to offer hope that the disease could be beaten.
For two days members of the Today Show crew videotaped Derek's therapy at RHCI, documenting the young athlete's progress. Today Show weekend anchor Lester Holt interviewed Derek, his parents and his physician, Dr. David M. Lowell, a neurologist and RHCI's medical director.
The segment was broadcast September 9 and again a week later. Derek's discharge from RHCI was covered by TV, newspapers and radio stations in Boston, Providence and on the Cape. As Dr. Lowell told the assembled media, Derek is a "determined and fortunate young man. For reasons we can't fully explain, his body was able to contain and limit the damage to his brain, and he has experienced a rapid improvement."
The news was of particular interest in eastern Massachusetts after three cases were diagnosed in August. On the Cape, mosquitoes carrying the virus were identified in Dennis, Barnstable and Brewster.
EEE is a relatively rare disease. About 250 cases have been reported in the last 40 years in the United States. "The disease is fatal in about 50 percent of cases," Dr. Lowell said. "Of those who survive the illness, only about 10 percent have a full recovery."
Dr. Lowell said Derek was admitted to RHCI's Brain Injury Program because "Triple E is a viral infection that caused white blood cells in his body to flood into his brain, resulting in multiple small areas of localized inflammation and damage. The resulting impairments of strength, memory, and perception are similar to the problems encountered following a traumatic brain injury. Many of the same rehabilitation techniques can therefore be employed."
RHCI's Brain Injury Program provides specialized expertise to address the medical, functional and behavioral needs of individuals with traumatic or acquired brain injury. Working with Derek's family, the team developed an intensive treatment program designed to strengthen Derek's paralyzed body and guide him through the stages of brain injury recovery.
The appearance of those three confirmed cases in August-including a 52-year-old Lakeville woman in serious condition and the young Middleboro fatality-caused widespread concern Many Southeastern Massachusetts communities rescheduled or cancelled football practice and other late afternoon sporting events because the risk of mosquito bites is greater at dawn and dusk. Parents and coaches doused young athletes who continued to play with mosquito repellent.
Former patients took center stage in the Rehabilitation Hospital of the Cape and Islands' seventh annual RHCI BoardWALK September 9. The 3-mile walk, which took place at Town Neck Beach, raised $72,000 with some additional receipts still coming in. The proceeds will be used to purchase equipment used to treat patients at the hospital and at its outpatient centers.
Peter Gammons, ESPN baseball analyst, Baseball Hall of Fame honoree and a recent patient at RHCI, sounded the keynote.
"To be here and to be able to do this is in many ways a miracle," Mr. Gammons said. He had suffered a brain aneurysm in June. Following treatment at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, he was admitted to RHCI for intensive rehabilitation in July.
Proceeds from the BoardWALK already are being used to enhance patient care. The first piece of equipment ordered is a mini-cycle which allows children with cerebral palsy, spina bifida, and other conditions causing mobility challenges to improve balance, strength and coordination.
About 350 patients, staff members, physicians, sponsors, friends of the hospital and community members turned out to walk the scenic course in support of the only facility providing hospital-level rehabilitation care on the Cape.
For the second straight year, the Rehabilitation Hospital of the Cape and Islands (RHCI) played host September 16 to 80 nationally recognized experts during a unique educational experience for physical and occupational therapists entitled "Bridging the Gap between Research and Clinical Practice in Neurorehabilitation."
RHCI is the only hospital in New England to sponsor a so-called dissemination conference, which combines cutting-edge research with hands-on instruction using actual patients.
"The demonstrations take the experience out of the realm of the theoretical into the realm of practical application of knowledge," said Lesley Smith, a physical therapist and RHCI's Stroke Program consultant who helped organize the event.
In keeping with the conference goal of disseminating the information, RHCI this year established an online discussion board so therapists could discuss findings after returning to their home facilities.
Headlining this year's conference were Terry Ellis, PT, PhD of Boston University, a nationally recognized authority on the treatment of Parkinson's Disease, and Gad Alon, PT, PhD. of the University of Maryland, a noted researcher in the field of clinical electrotherapy.