Larrick Ebanks, a 58-year-old British resident in the Balearic Islands, has donated an ECMO machine worth 78,650 euros to Palma's Son Espases hospital, where he spent 11 months admitted for COVID-19 in 2021. After 82 days in a coma connected to a similar device that saved his life, he led a fundraising campaign to acquire the equipment. The donation bolsters the hospital's resources for critical patients, including children.
In December 2021, Larrick Ebanks arrived at Palma's Son Espases hospital with severe bilateral pneumonia caused by COVID-19. His critical condition prompted the medical team to induce a 82-day coma, during which he was connected to an ECMO machine for extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, which extracts blood, oxygenates it, and returns it to the body to allow the lungs to rest. This was the longest duration any patient in the Balearic Islands has been connected to such a device, and Ebanks remained hospitalized for a total of 11 months.
Upon waking, surrounded by medical staff, family, and friends, Ebanks felt compelled to give back. "When I woke from the coma and saw all the people around me and the effort they had made to help me, I realized I had to do something with my life to help," he recounted on Monday, three years after his discharge. He led a fundraising campaign with solidarity events, channeled through the JoyRon Foundation, which aids needy children in the Balearics, and administratively managed by the Fundación Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria de las Islas (Idisba). This enabled the purchase of the ECMO machine, installed a month ago in the Intensive Care Unit, adding to the four already in place.
Dr. María Teresa Millán, who treated Ebanks, expressed her "emotion" at the gesture. Dr. José Raúl Arévalo explained that ECMO devices are used in severe heart or lung failures, such as pneumonia, and are crucial for pediatric patients; they require specialized teams and are employed only if conventional treatments fail.
Ebanks, a professional singer, still suffers aftereffects: his right lung is paralyzed and the left has issues, but he continues performing and feels fortunate. The donation will aid cases like that of three-and-a-half-year-old Tadeo Konnings, who has a rare heart condition and used ECMO for nine days after a complicated surgery. His father, Freddy Konnings, a gym acquaintance of Ebanks, shared the story to raise awareness and support the fundraising. "I believe we are in this life to help each other," Ebanks concluded.