“They gave me my life back”

In spring 2023, Roger van Klaveren felt increasingly ill for two weeks. At the time, the all-rounder was working as a landlord in Basel and trying to get on with everyday life. But one Sunday at the end of April, he suddenly noticed that his body was no longer cooperating. “At first I thought it would go away, but when I could no longer bend over, I knew something really bad was going on.” He went to hospital, where he was kept for further treatment and monitoring.

He has no memory of anything that happened afterwards. He only knows what happened to his body and during the treatments from the stories he told afterwards. He suffered a ruptured bowel. The doctors tried to repair the intestine, but it had already died. This was followed by multiple organ failure: the kidneys stopped functioning and could no longer cleanse the blood. A dialysis machine therefore had to take over this task. He was fitted with a stoma, an artificial small bowel outlet. And he was put into a coma. For four weeks, he hovered between life and death.

When he regained consciousness, it was already clear how severe the damage was. The sepsis had severely impaired his blood circulation. Toward the end of May, both of his lower legs were amputated. This was followed later by the partial amputation of a total of five fingers. Roger van Klaveren remained in the intensive care unit the entire time. At first, he was on a ventilator and couldn’t speak. “Many people couldn’t read my lips. That was extremely difficult for me,” he says.

After the intensive care phase, he was transferred to the normal ward. He could hardly move. Due to a painful pressure point on his skin caused by lying down for long periods, he regularly had to be placed on his side. This was difficult for him to bear. The wounds healed badly, especially on his head. During this time, he also experienced phases of delirium “I talked to pictures on the wall. I thought they were talking to me.”

He was later able to start occupational and physiotherapy. He was deeply impressed by the nursing staff: “They all fought for me”.

After his stay in hospital, he was able to move to rehabilitation in Rheinfelden. But there were setbacks there too: His abdominal wall was still open after the operation, wouldn’t close and kept popping open. In rehab, he put on his prostheses for the first time. “That was horror,” he says. “Your head says: it hurts, even if it doesn’t actually hurt.” The stoma also made it difficult to stand up. Despite this, Roger van Klaveren made rapid progress. He left rehab in mid-October 2023, walking independently with the prosthetic legs. “My therapist was incredibly supportive,” he says gratefully looking back.

Back home in Basel, Van Klaveren faced new challenges. He was unable to return to his apartment: it was on the second floor without an elevator, above his pub. He temporarily moved into a friend’s apartment. However, the fall gave him a hard time. “It was a difficult time. Not much sun, bad weather. It was also mentally draining.”

At the same time, he often thought back to the positive feedback from his rehabilitation period. They helped him not to give up during this phase. “In rehab, everyone said I had such a great charisma. That carried me through.”

Van Klaveren continued to run his pub until Fasnacht. After that, he had to stop. “Standing for so many hours is no longer possible.” Sitting for too long is difficult because of the stoma, standing for too long because of the prostheses. He was looking for an activity that made sense. “I want to motivate those affected and give them courage.” He shares his experiences with his followers on social media. “The doctors have given me my life back,” he says. “Now I want to help others who are in the same situation.” He is grateful for what he has left of life and is positive about the future.