It was supposed to be a brief work trip to Uganda. Now he owes a hospital $30K

A man from Alberta has been at the Medipal International Hospital in Kampala, Uganda, for more than two months with a hefty medical bill. He says he can’t leave until it’s been paid for, but he doesn’t have travellers’ medical insurance.

Colin Crane, from Edmonton, went to Africa in June for a business trip as an independent contractor. He got sick a few weeks later and took himself to the hospital.

“I had trouble sleeping, breathing and eating,” said Crane.

He says that, after he got a blood test, the nurses had to help him back to his bed. The results came back and confirmed he had severe malaria.

“When you get it, and you don’t treat it or seek medical attention on time immediately your organs start shutting down due to its complication,” said Linda Wefila, the principal nursing officer at the hospital where Crane was treated.

Crane’s kidneys stopped working and he was on dialysis. He thought he’d be at the hospital for a few days but slipped into a coma for six weeks.

“I woke up to intravenous bottles coming out of me and I couldn’t move. I could hardly lift my head off of the pillow,” said Crane.

Unfortunately, that wasn’t the only problem Crane would face. Hospital staff told him the medical bill was $30,000 and will increase the longer he is there. He said he wasn’t able to leave until it was paid.

“If he can make 50 per cent of the $30,000, we are able to let him go with a payment plan,” said Wefila.

But even paying half of the amount is a challenge. Crane did not have medical insurance while travelling. He said that because he’s made multiple trips to Africa for work without any issues, he didn’t think about the risks, and is now paying for them.

Martin Firestone, a travel expert, says Crane’s circumstance is a hard lesson to learn and a reminder to all travellers abroad about what can happen if they don’t get the medical coverage.

“One slip and fall or even a car accident and you are really out of luck because you’re going to have to pay the bill or face the consequences,” he said.

Firestone says it’s a positive sign that the hospital is willing to honour a payment plan.

“I would argue that he should really try to negotiate the bill down significantly and then work on a payment plan off that.”

In a statement to CTV News, Global Affairs says it’s providing Crane with “consular assistance” and “due to privacy considerations, no further information can be disclosed.”

Crane says he hasn’t had any luck getting a loan from the government to help with the bill. He’s now hoping that through his Gofundme page generous donors might step up to help him get home.

“I appreciate all the help I can get,” said Crane.

Crane’s recovery will still take up to two more months and Wefila says the quicker he is out of a hospital setting the better it is for his health.

“Staying in the hospital for a long time is not helping when it comes to rehabilitation. Him getting into the community gives his body some sense of adaptability for him to be able to go back to normal,” she said.

Crane says his experience has been difficult but he’s trying to keep a positive outlook. He’s hoping his story is a reminder to other travellers to buy medical insurance while outside of Canada.