“After a coma, progress for six to seven years”
You are participating in the round table this Tuesday evening, but it should be noted that ZEF did not follow his rehabilitation in your department.
“At the time, in 1987, rehabilitation was still relatively underdeveloped in France. There were a few large centres in Berck, Garches, Paris, the Henry Gabrielle hospital in Lyon, which took in seriously injured patients.
In Saint-Etienne, this was emerging. At the CHU, the service was founded, as far as neurological rehabilitation is concerned, in the mid-80s. The story of ZEF tells how we were able to rehabilitate patients who suffered head trauma or spinal cord injuries.. ZEF remembers that he was in a large room with about twenty beds, old beds.
Fortunately, today we have dedicated units where we can really take care of all these awakening phases, which can be very long, in good conditions.
In the 2000s, very specific channels were structured for these major head trauma patients with trauma awareness units, particularly in Saint-Etienne, which was one of the first models of post-resuscitation services dedicated to these admissions.
Why might it be important for patients and their families to see this documentary?
“This film is a message of hope. In the case of head injuries, rehabilitation begins in the hospital, but it will continue for years afterward. You have to develop perseverance to try to progress. You go home with a handicap, but you can still make progress for six or seven years. A sentence uttered in the documentary by ZEF’s cousin struck me. He says that ZEF’s reconstruction was done with forceps and that he was born again. You have to rebuild yourself. It’s a whole relearning process that will take years. What comes into play, afterwards, is the patients’ fighting spirit.”
“Perseverance is an asset”
Does a sporting background help in this reconstruction?
“Of course, previous personality counts. The advantage is that athletes have this ability to train repeatedly, to tolerate, sometimes, that this training is a source of pain and progress that is sometimes very long. Perseverance is an asset.”
Are there any others?
“It’s the entourage, the family. We see it very well in the documentary. ZEF was supported by his cousins, uncles, aunts, and an entire community. In Saint-Chamond, Firminy, Rive-de-Gier, the communities are structured and strong.
What is essential is the quality, motivation, and perseverance of the entourage. It was one of his cousins who continued the rehabilitation and made him walk every day on a course. This is why he recovered independent walking, without a cane. What makes the difference, we see, is the previous personality and the entourage.
Does your physical medicine and rehabilitation department offer psychological support to patients?
“Yes, for a very long time. This was set up at the CHU in the 90s. We have a psychologist, neuropsychologists and support teams who are somewhat experts. These services, which deal with these head injuries, need staff trained in understanding.
They must have a behavior adapted to the communication difficulties of these patients which, depending on the case, are not always easy. There may be behavioral disorders, passivity, aggressiveness. Cognitive difficulties that accompany these head traumas are very varied.
“ZEF, a life of struggles”
Broadcast of the documentary , September 10, at 6:30 p.m., at the Faculty of Medicine of Saint-Etienne, in the Marie Curie lecture hall.
It will be followed by a round table hosted by Lyndsey Thomas, French champion (2023), European champion (2024), world champion (2023) of kick-boxing, in the presence of Youcef Zenaf, ZEF, five-time world champion of full-contact, with the participation of Rayhane Chikhoun, the director of the documentary, Mathieu Lesueur, the producer, the Pr Pascal Giraux, head of the physical medicine and rehabilitation department at the CHU, and Jean-Claude Getenet, neurologist in memory consultation who followed the athlete.
