Buffalo Bills Safety Damar Hamlin has shown remarkable improvement since he collapsed on the field last week with cardiac arrest. Reportedly, Hamlin has been walking around the Cincinnati, Ohio hospital, eating a normal diet, and “jumped up and down” while watching the Bills defeat the New England Patriots on Sunday.
In contrast to media headlines that say the football player has been discharged from the hospital, Damar will continue to receive inpatient care but was transferred to a hospital in Buffalo where he will remain until he is well enough to receive outpatient care while staying at home.
“The goal of the transfer to Buffalo General Medical Center/Gates Vascular Institute is to get him closer to home for further evaluation, recovery and eventually discharge and rehabilitation,” the hospital said in a statement.
Hamlin is said to be doing well and the transfer to the Buffalo hospital closer to his home reflects that.
“We are thrilled and proud to share that Damar Hamlin has been released from the hospital and returned to Buffalo. He is doing well and this is the next stage of his recovery,” the University of Cincinnati Medical Center said in a statement through the Bills’ Twitter account.
Dr. Timothy Pritts, division chief of general surgery at the University of Cincinnati Medical Center, said Hamlin can be transferred to Buffalo because he is stable enough to make the trip and does not require the level of care available at the Cincinnati hospital.
“[W]e have some awesome rock star nurses who've been with him from the beginning, but he no longer needs that level of nursing care,” Pritts explained. “[He] no longer needs intensive respiratory therapy from our respiratory care practitioners and is able to, then, move to a setting where he would have less intensive care.”
Hamlin was flown from Cincinnati to Buffalo, New York, on Monday. On Thursday, January 5, Hamlin collapsed on the field after a routine tackle late in the first quarter of a game against the Cincinnati Bengals. Hamlin appeared normal after the play and stood up, but then stumbled backward and collapsed to the ground.
Medical personnel attended to the former University of Pittsburgh player for over 10 minutes, performing CPR until he was loaded into an ambulance and rushed to the University of Cincinnati Medical Center. The game was initially postponed before being canceled.
Every NFL Week 18 game included tributes to Hamlin. A moment of silence was held before the games, his jersey number was painted on the 30-yard line of every field, and players wore #3 patches in support. By the time the games were played, Hamlin had already shown remarkable improvement, walking around the hospital and sending a message to his teammates. On Sunday, Hamlin watched the Bills compete against division rival New England Patriots in the final regular season game of the season, leading to a heartwarming anecdote.
“He watched the game yesterday. When the opening kickoff was run back, he jumped up and down, got out of his chair, set, I think, every alarm off in the ICU in the process, but he was fine, it was just an appropriate reaction to a very exciting play,” Pritts said.
The next steps for Hamlin include his continued recovery and a series of tests to determine the cause of his cardiac arrest.
The Buffalo Bills defeated the New England Patriots, 23-35 on Sunday. With that victory, the Bills secured the second seed and will face the Miami Dolphins in the first round of the playoffs. Hamlin will not be playing in the game but he will undoubtedly be watching from a hospital bed in Buffalo, if not the sidelines.