Fundraising for young Carrick man who suffered traumatic brain injury
A friend of a young Carrickfergus man who suffered a traumatic brain injury after allegedly being assaulted is fundraising to help adapt the family's home for his recovery.
Ross Doherty was seriously injured after falling back and striking his head on the ground on January 7, 2025.
The 21-year-old spent four months in various hospitals, having sustained a massive frontal lobe brain bleed and a fractured skull with a diagnosis of severe traumatic brain injury.
He underwent three major brain surgeries, with one still to go.
Ross was discharged from hospital on May 7, but has been left with life-changing injuries.
"Before this happened Ross was able to live independently, but after he came out of hospital, he had to move in with me into our box room," said Ross's mum, Joanne, who is now his full-time carer.
"[The injury] hasn't reduced his age mentally, but cognitively. It's a bit like having to look after a seven or eight year old child. His ability to do things on a day-to-day basis has been affected; he won't get out of bed, eat or take his medication without me prompting him to. It has exacerbated his Asperger’s and ADHD too.
"His peripheral vision on the right hand side is completely gone, which is a massive safety risk for him. There's still part of his skull missing, so there'd be no protection for his brain if he were to fall over and hit his head."
Ross's injury has left him at increased risk of developing epilepsy and having seizures.
The damage to his frontal lobe means his ability to regulate emotions and to make decisions are also impacted, his mum added: "The executive thinking in his brain has been affected; he's more impulsive, so he would do things like walk out onto the road without looking.
"He has to have 24/7 supervision."
A GoFundMe page was set up by Ross's best friend, Callum Ewart, to help make adaptations to the family's home. "We're trying to fundraise as much as possible to make the house safer and more comfortable for them – things like a wee shed out the back that would be a private space for Ross, and fencing around the front to make it safer so that his mum won't have to worry about him," Callum said.