Wright State student Abdelrahman Mohamed spent his spring break recovering after suffering a brain aneurysm that left him hospitalized for two weeks. Unsure of what the post-surgery results would be, his fraternity Phi Kappa Tau decided to initiate him in his hospital room.
On February 11, Mohamed was rushed to the hospital via ambulance after experiencing a severe headache in the dorms.
“I had an unusual pain in my head,” Mohammed said. “It was so painful that I was on the ground holding my head from pain. I figured that was not just a headache and something was wrong.”
Upon arrival at Kettering Medical Center, he learned that he had suffered from a brain aneurysm. The doctors performed surgery, but the procedure failed, leaving him in the intensive care unit. Following the procedure he was given a 50/50 percent chance of surviving a second operation.
Mohamed is from Egypt and said he found a home away from home when he joined Phi Kappa Tau fraternity at Wright State. His brothers filled the waiting room during his entire hospital stay.
One of the nurses asked Mohamed how long he had known the boys in the waiting area. His response was that he had only known them for one semester at school. The nurse could not believe how close he had become with these guys after just one semester and that he considered them his family.
“It was more than amazing having my fraternity brothers and all the Greeks support, I even introduced my fraternity to the doctors as my family when they asked. I didn’t even call my real family back home because I knew these guys got my back.”
When Mohamed entered the hospital he had not yet been initiated into Phi Kappa Tau and was still considered an associate member. The fraternity got permission from their National President Steve Nelson to initiate him while he was in the hospital.
The initiation took place prior to Mohamed’s second surgery.
“Regardless of the outcome of the surgery, we wanted AB to be a full brother of Phi Kappa Tau,” Phi Kappa Tau President, Andrew Dover said.
When Mohamed found out he was going to be initiated in the hospital, he was thrilled.
“It was so sweet, I could barely remember what they told me but I remember getting so excited that my blood pressure kept getting high and that they had to stop many times so the nurse could come in and fix it up,” Mohamed said.
Mohamed’s second surgery was a success and his family was able to arrive in the U.S. a couple hours after. He not only received support from his fraternity, but the whole Greek community as well. Wright State’s Greek community raised $775 dollars to give to the family of Mohamed to relieve some of their travel expenses.
Mohamed also received numerous cards and hospital visits from members of other fraternities and sororities at Wright State. On March 9, he went around to chapter meetings to thank everyone for their support.
“I want to thank all of you for supporting me, I greatly appreciate it,” Mohamed said at a Kappa Delta meeting. “I also want you to know that if you guys ever need anything, I’ll be there for you.”
