Meet Chelsi

"I was lost for words when the doctors told me my daughter Chelsi would be in a wheelchair for the rest of her life," Chelsi’s dad Stephen said.

In June this year, Stephen rushed to Cairns Base Hospital to discover that his three-year-old daughter Chelsi had been seriously injured in a car crash. "The nurses told me I wouldn’t see much of Chelsi because she would be all covered up. It was gut-wrenching and hard to comprehend," Stephen said.

"Chelsi had a neck brace on, and lay on the hospital bed lifeless."

A few days after the accident, Stephen met with the orthopaedic doctors and prepared himself for more bad news. Chelsi had damaged her spinal cord and was diagnosed a T9 paraplegic. This meant she was paralysed from the waist down.

"The doctors said she would be taken to the Royal Children’s Hospital in Brisbane for recovery treatment," Stephen said.

Chelsi underwent an operation at the Royal Children’s Hospital to strengthen her back. She was then fitted with a cast which she wore for three months.

"It’s been a long journey for Chelsi and our family. She had many speech therapy and physiotherapy sessions to improve her condition," Stephen said.

"I also had to learn how to care for her and most importantly, remain her pillar of strength."

Stephen appreciates the importance of supporting the Royal Children’s Hospital Foundation as it invests in groundbreaking research, faster diagnoses, better treatments and ultimately cures.

"We have received a lot of support from the Royal Children’s Hospital Foundation and the volunteers. They made a difference to Chelsi’s road to recovery and made our lives so much easier."

On average five children every week are retrieved from regional areas and transported to the Royal Children’s Hospital for specialist care. The hospital treats more than 30,000 children every year from all over Queensland and beyond.

Thank you for supporting the Kids Christmas Appeal and helping to work wonders for sick kids like Chelsi.