14 Jan 2026
In July 2017, in her home country Jordan, while her son was at university in London, Rola experienced every mother’s worst nightmare.
Yousef, age 21 at the time, was about to start studying Corporate and Commercial Law at Queen Mary University. He was a happy, healthy, kind young man, who was enjoying learning and experiencing living in a different city.
On the morning of the incident, Yousef contacted Rola. “He was always the type of son who called and texted us frequently, checking in and seeing how we were doing.
“On that day, he told me of his plans to go to the British Museum with friends. But then we didn’t hear anything after that.”
Rola and her family were having a celebration, but she had a sense that something was wrong when she hadn’t heard from Yousef in the evening. After a few more hours, Rola reached out to one of his friends on social media, who informed her Yousef hadn’t turned up to the museum trip.
“At that moment, everything shattered.”
Yousef had been horrifically struck by a car when crossing the road.
London’s Air Ambulance was dispatched by road to Yousef’s side. On arrival, he was being looked after by London Ambulance Service (LAS) paramedics. It was reported that he had been seen to be struck by a car, thrown into the air and land on his head.
He was immediately unconscious and his breathing was irregular. We quickly assessed him and confirmed he had sustained a severe traumatic brain injury (TBI). The team performed a roadside general anaesthetic to take over Yousef’s breathing using a ventilator. This was done to ensure Yousef was getting maximum oxygen to his body (in particular his brain) and to manage his ability to breath – only our crew can do this on scene in London. Yousef was then taken to the nearest major trauma centre.
Once in hospital, Yousef was taken to theatre, where a third of his skull was removed to release the pressure in his brain.
“In the first month of being in hospital Yousef had six surgeries on his skull. The wounds kept getting infected,” Rola said.
“There were tubes all over his body and so many medications. He also had a tracheostomy – which he now calls his beauty mark!”
Yousef spent five months in hospital, “most of which was in what I would call a vegetative state,” said Rola. “It took such a long time before there were any signs of awareness. He then underwent years of neuro-rehabilitation.”
Now, Yousef is living at home with Rola and his family. The effects of his brain injury still play a large role in his life – his verbal communication is significantly restricted. But he is here, enjoying the life he has.
“He tries to have an active life and have as much fun as he can,” said Rola. “He goes on many coffee dates and lunches, goes to the gym nearly every day and still works hard in therapy sessions. We even got to visit the helipad!”
During the recovery journey, Rola once mentioned to Yousef that she’d looked for a book online to see if someone had written something about a similar situation to theirs.
So, in 2025, Yousef finished writing his own book.
“He wanted to write a book so another mother can find hope and so another mother can believe their child will recover.”
The book is called ‘Never give up’ and describes Yousef’s journey – how there is always a way to progress, how he overcame obstacles and how with the right support around you, there’s hope. You can purchase a copy of the book here.
When considering what to say to another mother, Rola said: “Stay strong, but always accept help. You need help. It’s a long journey and it’s comforting to have someone helping you.”
To conclude, Yousef verbalised with the help of Rola:
“I want to tell another patient not to be scared. Everything is possible. Just have hope. And thank you.”