A great big GOOD LUCK to Consultant Obstetrician Mrs Arundhati Mulay who is travelling to Tenerife this weekend in an effort to raise funds for a hospital that saved her life.

Hospital Universitario Nuestra Señora de Candelaria looked after the consultant who was fighting for her life in April 2016 after becoming unconscious whilst scuba diving.

Mrs Mulay, who joined the Trust’s maternity services as a registrar in 2006 and later became a consultant, explained: “It’s unclear what went wrong. I can’t remember the day of the accident and have no memory of the day before it either.

“The medics can’t explain what happened – it wasn’t clear what part of my body failed me. My family tell me that all seemed normal as we dived in, so it is unclear what went wrong as I hit the water; I just became unconscious and sank to the sea bed.”

Although she was no stranger to the leisure activity, having previously dived in both Menorca and Sri Lanka, this occasion saw the consultant having to be rescued soon after the dive began; after the group noticed that she had failed to keep up.

“My son, who was 21 at the time, swam back with the instructor to look for me, brought me to the surface and swam us back to the shore. He started CPR along with my husband and fortunately a nurse was nearby at the time and was able to assist with the resuscitation until the paramedics arrived.”

“If I’d have been on a boat in the middle of the sea then I’m sure the outcome would’ve been different;  I couldn’t have lasted so long without breathing support so I consider myself really lucky and thank my son and husband for being so brave and having the presence of mind.”

And after 10 days in a coma, Mrs Mulay woke up on the hospital’s Intensive Care Unit, supported by a breathing tube. Strangely, there was no explanation of what made her lose consciousness as all investigation results returned as normal.

Nearly two weeks after arriving at the hospital she was discharged and returned home on 19 May 2017 – she then took an additional six months off work for recovery.

Now fit and well, she is running the Tenerife Half Marathon this Sunday (11 November 2018) alongside friends and family and is raising money for the hospital in an effort to say ‘thank you’.

“The whole service was fantastic, and despite financial constraints, they really went above and beyond to care for me.

“Language was never a barrier either – everything was explained clearly and my family members were kept well informed and involved in the care at all times. They displayed great professionalism.

Between the hospital’s great care and the heartfelt messages of support from colleagues, friends and family, Mrs Mulay claims to have been truly touched by those around her.

“A lot of the time, we save saying nice things about someone until after they’ve died, but when I was off recovering it was almost like I got to hear those messages ahead of time.

“Everyone was so lovely and the reception I got when I returned to work was really heart-warming.”

Along with the funds from a recent raffle, she has so far been able to raise nearly £1900 for the cause, hoping that the money will be spent on the urgent care services that treated her such as the Emergency Department and Intensive Care Unit.

Want to support Mrs Mulay in her fundraiser?

Donate by visiting https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/sanjay-mulay

(donations close on Sunday afternoon)