August 12, 2019 was a hot, summer night in Wake Forest, North Carolina, and 15-year-old Mason Hilke along with his friends were looking for a little adventure.

A lacrosse player, Wake Forest High School rising sophomore and self-proclaimed dare devil, Mason’s thrill-seeking culminated in a way he hadn’t expected — a life-threatening head injury.

Fun and Games Turn to Terror

That evening, Mason and his friends decided to go skateboard hitching or “skitching” — an activity they’d tried once before. It involved Mason riding on his skateboard tethered by rope to a friend’s scooter and travelling at about 35 miles per hour through a neighborhood. Mason wasn’t wearing a helmet, and when he bumped into some obstruction in the road (possibly a pebble), he lost his balance, fell backwards and landed in excruciating pain on the back of his head.

Immediately, one of the friends called 911, and then Mason’s parents. They all arrived on the scene within a few minutes.

“When I saw him,” says Pam Hilke, Mason’s mom, “it didn’t seem that severe. He was clearly lethargic and his head hurt. I didn’t realize the severity of the injury until I was in the ambulance with him and headed to the hospital.”

Within minutes of getting into the ambulance, Mason deteriorated. Upon arrival to WakeMed Raleigh Campus, he coded and had to be resuscitated.

A Life-Saving Emergency Surgery

The WakeMed Trauma team was outside the emergency department standing by for Mason. Cherissa Hanson, MD, MAAP of the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU), was called down for support. The awaiting trauma team and subspecialist along with appropriate and timely interventions — all features of a Level 1 Trauma Center — made the major impact in this case.

According to Scott Moore, MD, the trauma attending who was present upon Mason’s initial arrival, “Thanks to the strong, collaborative work with Wake County EMS, including shared guidelines and protocols, recognition of high acuity, understanding of the need to transfer the patient to a Level 1 Trauma Center and the detailed history provided by EMS and the parent, this patient was provided rapid intervention during the ‘golden hour.'”

The team sent him back for imaging, diagnosed a large epidural hematoma, a traumatic brain injury (TBI) and a pneumothorax.

The trauma team, acknowledging this as a life-threatening head injury, immediately prepped him for surgery. He was then rushed into the operating room for an emergency craniotomy performed by neurosurgeon Andrey Belayev, MD.  

Pam says, “It was such a scary time for us. When I got out of the ambulance, they rushed me off to a waiting room in the care of a chaplain and asked when my husband, Rich, would arrive. I called Rich, and the health care worker asked where he was exactly, so they could get him parked and inside. I could feel the gravity of the situation.”

Recovery in the PICU and the Rehabilitation Hospital

Pam recalls, “The neurosurgeon came out to us after the surgery and said, ‘We saved your son’s life.’ At that moment, I realized that every second counted. If even one thing had not gone as quickly as it did from EMS to surgery, I don’t think my son would have survived.”

After surgery, Mason’s recovery began. He spent 73 grueling days in the hospital. First, he was transferred to the PICU where he stayed for a little over 20 days.

Mason had to be intubated and placed on a ventilator because he could not maintain his airway. He also had to be placed on a feeding tube (PEG tube) for nourishment because he could not swallow without aspirating. Scott Moore, MD performed his tracheostomy and feeding tube procedures. Mark Piehl, MD, MPH, of the PICU, had medications administered through Lifeflow. 

Pam says, “My son failed getting off the ventilator three times before they decided to do a tracheotomy. The injury was in the region that controlled motor skills, so he couldn’t manage his airway.”

Because the TBI impacted his motor control, Mason could not breathe, eat or talk independently. He also couldn’t control his movements very well. He lost some hearing and had vision issues early on as well. His lungs collapsed a few times.

However, each day he improved just a bit more as the brain swelling went down, and eventually he was released to the WakeMed Rehabilitation Hospital for inpatient rehabilitation. There, he spent seven weeks receiving speech, occupational, recreational and physical therapy.

Pam says, “He had to learn how to use his muscles to walk, talk, breathe and balance again. He lost about 30 pounds in just 20 days. I was so proud of my son, though. Many days, he didn’t feel well, but there was nothing they asked him to try that he wouldn’t try, and he tried to keep a smile on his face.”

Pam and her husband, Rich, were not only proud of their son, but they were also grateful for the amazing inpatient rehab team.

Pam says, “The tracheotomy was removed soon after he got into inpatient rehab. After 57 days and several swallowing tests, he was finally able to eat real food, so he was able to get the PEG tube out.”

A Happy Homecoming

In October 2019, Mason got to go home — just in time for the family to celebrate Halloween. His family, friends and Wake Forest community hosted a beautiful fundraising event for which the Hilke’s are forever grateful.

After his release from inpatient rehab, he was referred to WakeMed Outpatient Rehab to continue therapy.

He left the hospital in a wheelchair and eventually progressed to a cane before being able to walk without assistance. Mason missed the first half of his sophomore year but was able to start back to school part-time during the second semester.

Mason Hilke Today

As of 2022, Mason is doing incredibly well. Aside from the tracheotomy scar, there are no obvious signs of his harrowing injury and extensive recovery.

Pam says, “He’s doing great. If anything remains, I’d say he has a little pitch issue related to hearing. My husband will call him, and he can’t hear, but I’ll call him, and he hears. He has a little bit of balance issues. It isn’t major or noticeable. He had to stop playing lacrosse because the risk of a head injury was too serious. Now he loves to read comic books, write and listen to music. He will be graduating high school this year and plans to attend college in fall 2022.”

A Grateful Family

The Hilke’s credit a loving community, the power of prayer and swift medical intervention with saving their son’s life. From EMS, the trauma team, the PICU team, respiratory therapists, the rehab team, speech therapists, occupational therapists, child life specialists, social workers, maintenance, imaging, neuropsychology, orthopaedics, gastroenterology and so many more, they are endlessly grateful to all who stepped in to help.

Pam says, “I can’t begin to name everyone at WakeMed who made a difference. Everyone cared. Everyone helped. Even the culinary team made an impression. On the day that my son was given permission to eat, the WakeMed chef came up to his room and asked him what he wanted to eat. I was in awe of the compassion and care that flowed from every single person we encountered.”

Mason’s Coming of Age

“Mason also learned an important lesson,” recalls Pam. “He learned that decisions he makes in a moment can affect not just his life but the lives of others. I had to stop working for a while after his injury. He saw how it affected our family. He saw how many people were called on to help. I think my son came of age during this experience.

“We are so grateful to WakeMed for saving our son’s life on that fateful night.”

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About the WakeMed Trauma Program

From pre-hospital and emergency care to surgery, intensive care and rehabilitation, WakeMed’s Trauma program features a network of care and specialists who are dedicated to preserving life and getting patients on the road to recovery. A continuum of services support trauma patients, starting with EMS and our trauma surgeons to spiritual care, imaging, lab, neurosurgeons, orthopaedists, rehab specialists and more.

WakeMed Trauma Centers

As Wake County’s only provider of trauma services and a regional trauma referral center, our two trauma centers — a Level I Trauma Center at Raleigh Campus and a Level III Trauma Center at Cary Hospital — and the WakeMed Trauma teams are standing ready to provide immediate care for the seriously injured.

WakeMed Rehabilitation Hospital

The WakeMed Rehabilitation Hospital is a 103-bed, nationally accredited rehabilitation hospital in Raleigh, NC with the largest number of rehab beds under one roof than any other rehab hospital in the entire state. WakeMed Rehabilitation offers a full continuum of physical rehabilitation services from the acute care setting (including a neuro care unit), through inpatient rehab in our CARF-accredited rehabilitation hospital, intensive day treatment, home health, outpatient rehabilitation and social programs. We offer specialty rehab programming for spinal cord injury, brain injury, stroke, amputee and pediatric patients. Our team consists of highly experienced therapists who specialize in treating the most complex patients. With the positive support of our team of physical therapists, occupational therapists, speech-language pathologists, neuropsychologists, nurses, case managers and physicians, our patients work hard to achieve the best possible outcomes and return to their lives.

WakeMed PICU

At WakeMed’s Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU), we provide expert treatment for life-threatening childhood diseases, automobile accident injuries, respiratory and heart problems, and other critical illnesses and injuries. Our PICU is the only unit of its kind in Wake County.

Our staff offers family-centered, personalized care in a unit designed especially for children. With an experienced team of pediatric specialists, critical-care nurses, child life specialists, child psychologists, social workers, respiratory therapists and chaplains, our PICU meets the physical needs as well as the emotional and psychological needs of children.

Our full-time pediatric intensivists — physicians who specialize in the care of critically ill children — are also faculty members at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine.