At the beginning of this year Rand, and more recently Oaklands local, 23-year-old Corey Hogan suffered a spinal injury that resulted in quadriplegia.
Now, after almost eight months in hospital, Corey has returned to his family home in Rand.
A local farmer and football player, Corey’s accident happened during a night out with friends in February.
He was rushed to Melbourne via helicopter where he has been cared for at Austin Health's Victorian Spinal Cord Service.
Corey’s patient journey has included long periods in the Austin’s intensive care, acute spinal ward and rehabilitation facility.
Corey’s mum Shelley said Corey spending so much time in hospital has been tough but the support they have received and to have him home now is amazing.
“The night it happened, and we got down to Melbourne and he woke up, I just said “this is not your story, we are going to fight this. And we will continue to do so”,” Shelley said.
“His face just lit up when he came home. He was straight out into the paddock to check the crops.
“Right now Corey is feeling fantastic, we both are as it is so good to be home.
“As a mum I have no words for having him home again.”
Spinal patients often stay in hospital for more than nine months, which can be an isolating and a challenging experience.
Whilst stuck in hospital, Corey’s friends and family showed incredible support, many travelling to Melbourne to visit him during this time.
The support the family has also received from the wider community has been absolutely mind blowing and the family will never be able to get around to everyone to thank them for their assistance.
“The support we have got up here from so many communities such as Oaklands, Urana, Rand, Walbundrie, Walla, Corowa; our support network has blown us away,” Shelley said.
“We are in Rand out on the farm and Corey had been in Oaklands for around the past five years so those communities have absolutely rallied around us.
“We are just so grateful! We are very lucky our community is so wide and far that the support from day one to even beyond now has blown my mind.
“They just turn up. Even businesses in Albury helped us out and donated supplies for the renos, it is not just one person, it is so far and wide and they got us through.
“I was in Melbourne pretty much full time for those eight months and just people looking out for my daughter who is still at school was amazing.
“Corey also has his own windrowing business so he has been organising that fallout in the background of being home. Everyone has come together to help us with that, like offering to drive it or help us shift machinery.
“I couldn’t even name everyone that we would like to thank. Just a small few are the Billabong Crows Football Netball Club and the Rand/Walbundrie/Walla Football Netball Club, as well as well beyond that.
“On Mother’s Day I came home cause the Giants (Rand/Walbundrie/Walla) played the Crows (Billabong) at Urana so I made a special point of coming home and doing a thank you because that was an easier way to get to a large group of people who have assisted.
“But it is still so far from everyone we would like to thank. I couldn’t single one person out, everyone has had our back.
“The support also continues now that we are home, we are very blessed and will be forever grateful.”
Now back home on the family farm in Rand Corey is receiving rehab from local organisations and is looking forward to spending Christmas at home in the region.
“For Corey’s rehab we have people coming out to the house which is excellent. We have an amazing team from Amaranth in Corowa and they have been nothing but amazing from before we got home,” Shelley said.
“I have no words. They are so good.
“We couldn’t have done it without them and everyone else’s support. Everyone has just kept us going.
“You know you have your friends, family and your people but this has just blown me away with the support they have provided.”
Austin Health’s Christmas Appeal, in which Corey is the face of for 2024, is currently raising funds to transform the Spinal Ward, in which he was treated, for long-term patients like Corey.
Through the appeal the hospital will create a new patient lounge and outdoor retreat to enhance recovery and overall wellbeing for patients, connecting them to nature and enabling them to spend more time with friends and family.
Evidence shows exposure to green spaces can lead to improved mental health and faster recovery for patients in a hospital setting.
The two new wheelchair and hospital bed-accessible spaces will allow families and patients to spend quality time together, making being away from home a little easier, with comfortable retreats connected to nature to rest and recover in.
When asked about Corey being the face of the Christmas fundraising campaign, Shelley said he doesn’t like a big deal being made of him but has said himself that ‘if we can help patients and families down there to have a great space, then I am happy to do it’.
“He wants to make the space for patients and families just better for people,” Shelley said.
“As much as we wish there wasn’t, unfortunately there are going to be more people like Corey and they need a nice space, gardens and a nice family lounge where you can go instead of standing in corridors of a hospital.
“Corey and I would go over to the gardens between the Austin and Olivia Newton John Hospital because it was beautiful, quiet and didn’t feel like a hospital.
“We just thought, this is such a small thing we can do to say thank you and if we could promote to get something for everyone else to make their journey easier, let’s do it.”
The Victorian Spinal Cord Service, run through Austin Health, supports patients from across Victoria, the Riverina district in New South Wales and Tasmania, serving an area of more than seven million people.
For spinal patients and families, the hospital becomes their home for months, and the environment they recover in plays a crucial role in their physical and emotional healing.
The Austin Health Christmas campaign will run from October 21 to December 25.
To find out more, or to donate visit austin.org.au/donate.