WARNING – DISTRESSING CONTENT: Niaomi Baker, 33, travelled to Tunisia but faced a medical emergency on the plane due to take her back home – the Brit remains in hospital more than two months on
The family of a British woman stuck more than 1,000 miles away from home, after she collapsed on holiday, said they “feel helpless”.
Niaomi Baker, 33, was due to fly back to the UK from Tunisia when she suffered a seizure onboard the plane and was rushed to hospital – where she was placed in an induced coma. The 33-year-old, from Kirkby, Merseyside, has remained bedbound in the costal city of Sousse two months after she collapsed. Niaomi suffers from epilepsy, autism and functional neurological disorder (FND), and her family are battling to bring her home for treatment.
Although doctors have since brought Niaomi out of the coma, the Brit has not regained full consciousness.
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Niaomi’s cousin Laylla Baker said the 33-year-old went abroad without the knowledge of her family – and without travel insurance despite her medical conditions. Laylla said: “It’s hard to explain what we’re going through as a family. You see things like this on the news but you don’t expect it to happen to someone you know.”
The cousin, who is also from Merseyside, said the family had no idea Niaomi left the country until she was told by one of her carers days after the plane incident. Laylla said she had concerns over why this happened, as she is her cousin’s next of kin.
She said: “I don’t really know exactly what’s happened and what date she went there. I didn’t even know she was going on holiday. No one informed us.”
The cousin said Niaomi fell ill as she boarded her return flight on February 11, adding: “Apparently, she was due to fly back home, but she suffered a medical episode and had a seizure on the plane.
“They removed her from the aircraft and took her to the local hospital in Sousse where she carried on having seizures. They don’t know anything about Niaomi’s medical background, so they’ve obviously thought the best thing to do was to put her in an induced coma.”
Niaomi has lived with epilepsy since the age of two and also has FND – a neurological condition that can cause seizures, weakness and difficulties with movement and communication. Laylla said her cousin has also suffered trauma, including the devastating loss of her mum Karen, who she found dead in bed two years ago.
Laylla shared her concerns for her cousin and said the situation has been made worse as she is unable to travel to Tunisia due to her own health concerns. She said: “She’s out there on her own and I’m worried that the reason she’s not coming round is because she’s got no one to talk to her. It’s just horrible.”
The 34-year-old added: “I’ve got a brain tumour that I’ve been battling for six years. I can’t fly there due to my medical condition. I just wish I was able to be there with her, because I think I’d be able to get her to come round. I really do believe that.”
Laylla also hit out at authorities, claiming her cousin had been “failed” after travelling abroad without family knowledge despite requiring daily care, saying: “Adult social care have failed her. She normally has carers going to visit her four times a day. That tells you everything you need to know.
“If you had any doubt in your head that Niaomi was not capable of doing this, why didn’t you help her – or inform family members? I feel like she has been failed by the system really badly.”
Communication with doctors abroad has also proved difficult, with Laylla relying on the British embassy for updates. She said: “It’s an absolute nightmare. The hospital were in contact with us when she was intensive care. But she has been out there for nine weeks now and I’ve not heard anything from doctors a week.”
The family are desperately trying to raise around £35,000 to fund a medical air ambulance to bring Niaomi back to the UK, where they hope she can be treated at the Walton Centre in Liverpool. Laylla said: “She’s a UK citizen and a vulnerable adult stuck abroad.” The fundraiser for Niaomi can be found here.
