When a High School Graduation Party Turns Tragic

Drew McCauley of Monroe laid unconscious, strapped to a bed in the critical care unit at St. Vincent's Medical Center on Thursday night. Hooked up to a ventilator and an IV, McCauley was dependent on the care of nurses Cindy Cervini and Jose Portillo.

McCauley was only playing the role of a young man severely injured in a car crash while driving home from a high school graduation party.

Cervini told McCauley's fictional story to teen members of the Stratford Explorer Post as part of St. Vincent's Teen Education on Drinking and Driving (TEDD) program.

Cervini told them McCauley sustained a head injury and a fracture at the base of his skull, putting pressure on his brain. She said a piece of skull is sometimes removed so the brain has room to swell.

"He has a collar to prevent him from moving his neck in case he has a neck injury," Cervini said.

A tube would be inserted to remove liquid from McCauley's stomach and it would later be used for feeding, Cervini explained.

A bandage on McCauley's wrist was for a small fracture.

"He has wrist restraints, so when he wakes up he doesn't try to pull things out," Cervini said.

McCauley's condition also included a fractured femur.

He would be hooked up to a catheter to urinate, and another tube would be inserted in his rectum for stools.

Cervini asked the Explorer Troops how long they thought it would take for McCauley's body to heal and they gave answers ranging from three to six months.

"We have no idea how long it will take to heal and whether or not the brain injury will ever heal," Cervini said. "He might not ever recover. He was just at a high school graduation party and now he may not graduate or go to college. His parents will have to care for him."

Cervini said the centers offering the best therapies are often not covered by insurance.

"His mother may have to quit her job to care for him and his other sibling's future may be affected as well," Cervini said of the sad aftermath of one night of drinking.