Father returns home after weeks in European hospital following severe illness on vacation
DENVER - A Colorado father is finally back home recovering after falling ill on a vacation cruise and spending weeks in a hospital in Europe.
Guy Matlock, 64, was diagnosed with influenza A, pneumonia and sepsis during a trip to Europe in September.
He was hospitalized in Copenhangen, Denmark. His daughter, Moriah, said he was breathing with the help of a ventilator.
The family spent weeks trying to raise funds to get him flown back home to the U.S., soliciting donations on a GoFundMe page.
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On Monday, the family had posted that Matlock had arrived home. They continue to post updates about his recovery.
"Our parents have arrived safe!" the post read. "Thank you again for all the support and help we have received to bring our parents home. Words could never express the gratitude and appreciation we have for all the donation, shares, text, phone calls, ect."
"We feel incredibly blessed to have so much support and outreach of people."
A vacation-turned-nightmare
Moriah said her parents went on a European cruise to celebrate their 37th anniversary along with another couple in September. About a week into the trip, her dad started getting sick but initially thought it was the common cold.
Her dad's condition quickly worsened, and he went to the ship's infirmary. He was then transported to a hospital after the ship declared an emergency and pulled into the nearest port.
He later went into cardiac arrest.
Guy Matlock, 64, is currently hospitalized in Denmark after being diagnosed with influenza, pneumonia, and sepsis. (Credit: Moriah Matlock)
Having never traveled out of the country before, Moriah and other relatives obtained emergency passports to visit her father while he was hospitalized in Denmark. Her physical interaction and communication with him were limited due to his diagnosis.
"It was really heartbreaking to have to talk to my dad in such a way…I'm glad that I could be there for him," she previously said in an interview with FOX Television Stations. "I'd never seen my dad in such a state where he was unable to even breathe on his own."
The challenge of getting the father back home
Moriah praised the hospital staff in Denmark, but the staff agreed her father would recover much faster and better if he returned to the U.S., where he would be home, surrounded by family, and not have difficulty comprehending a foreign language.
However, insurance would only pay for part of his trip back home, leaving the family to pay $150,000 upfront to cover the costs of the medical transport from Europe to Colorado.
"He's in need of a medevac to come back, and that will require a doctor on the plane that will help assist him," Moriah said, adding if her father progresses in Europe the cost of transport may be a little less.
The family had set up a GoFundMe page to help cover the medical transport. They also aksed people to provide any medical resources or advice that could help the family work through the foreign bureaucracies.
Moriah said her dad has a big, giving heart and hopes he will receive that same sentiment in return.
"He just has a great smile, and he loves to make other people smile," she said.