An Australian mother is fighting for her life after she was found unconscious in her hotel room in Bali.
Gold Coast woman Deborah Stone is currently being treated in intensive care at BIMC Nusa Dua Bali Hospital after being admitted on Friday.
The 66-year-old has lived on the holiday island for the past few years and has devoted most of her time to charity and volunteer work.
She was supposed to fly home on Thursday to help her daughter Fiona Gunn with wedding plans, but was found unconscious in her hotel room in Legian.
The incident is an additional blow to the family as Ms Gunn’s father-in-law only recently returned home after seven weeks on life support.
The family has also been billed tens of thousands of dollars as Ms. Stone continues to receive care at the hospital.
Gold Coast woman Deborah Stone is currently being treated in intensive care at BIMC Hospital Nusa Dua Bali
Days before Mrs. Stone was hospitalized, she had entertained her brother Max, who had flown to the holiday island to visit her.
She then fell ill and a concerned Max called her hotel to ask the staff to check in with her.
“He was really concerned – he had the hotel staff open the room and then they found her unconscious,” Ms Gunn said. news.com.au.
“I spoke to her last Tuesday and she was being treated for migraines, vomiting and diarrhea.”
Ms Gunn received the devastating phone call on August 11 from her sister Nichole, 47, informing her that their mother had been rushed to intensive care.
On admission, Ms. Stone was severely dehydrated with a severe electrolyte imbalance.
The ICU chief physician told Ms. Gunn said her mother suffered a brain injury, but could not confirm whether the swelling was caused by a stroke, restricted blood flow or dehydration, and an electrolyte imbalance.
Ms. Stone has since regained consciousness and is in a serious but stable condition.
“She is verbal and we were able to talk to her but she is swallowing and bedridden and at this stage they don’t know the extent of the neurological damage,” said Ms Gunn.
Mrs Stone (right) with her daughters Fiona (centre), 34, and Nichole, 47 (left)
Mrs. Gunn’s wedding plans are on hold while the family focuses on taking each day as it comes.
“Our goal is to get her well enough to be able to get her back home so she’s here with family and can give her the treatment she needs,” said Ms Gunn.
Ms Gunn described the ordeal as a ‘nightmare’, with the news coming from her mother not long after her family welcomed her father-in-law home after he had been on life support for seven weeks.
The 34-year-old started with one GoFundMe to raise money for her mother’s medical expenses.
As of Sunday, Ms. Stone’s medical expenses exceed $22,000 for three days in her hospital stay.
Ms Gunn explained that the family has been ‘scribbling’ to raise enough money to cover her mother’s expenses as Bali has to pay for medical treatment upfront.
She added that her mother unfortunately did not have travel insurance and urged all Aussie travelers to pay the extra costs for medical cover.
It is not known how long Ms. Stone will remain in hospital and how much ongoing care will cost.
The GoFundMe page has received 74 donations totaling $7,925 at the time of writing and aims to raise $50,000.
“We are so incredibly overwhelmed by your generosity and don’t know what we would do without the funds raised so far,” Ms Gunn wrote.
“We have also received so many words of support and love, we thank you all for reaching out to us and we have passed these words on to Debbie. She was so grateful and overwhelmed by the kindness and generosity shown.”
Ms. Gunn described her mother as an extremely generous person who is passionate about helping others less fortunate.
Ms. Stone (pictured) lived in Bali and worked with local charities to raise money for local people in need. Her daughter has started a GoFundMe page to help with the costs of medical treatment
Before the horrific accident, Ms. Stone worked with charities in Bali to raise money for the local population.
“Debbie is very generous and used to raise money and do charitable work with the local people in Bali, such as buying and donating food and clothing packages,” Ms Gunn wrote.
“She has always been passionate about helping others in less fortunate positions throughout her life and we know she has made a difference in many people’s lives.
“If you don’t know Debbie personally, she’s cooked meals for the homeless, fostered, and raised money for the underprivileged.”
Mrs. Stone started her own GoFundMe page in December 2022 to raise money for ‘less fortunate’.
“Those of you who know me well know I’ve spent most of my life taking care of people,” Ms. Stone wrote.
“My late husband and I had a dream in which we had to sacrifice to give up a permanent home so we could travel, identify needs, and try to fulfill them.”