Seven-time Formula 1 world champion Michael Schumacher is out of coma, but he could remain in hospital for a long time.
After the former F1 champion was moved to Lausanne, his home town, for further treatment, there were reports that Schumacher is now communicating and breathing without assistance, which raised hopes of early recovery of the 45-year-old.
"It won't be days. It could be for the long-haul," CHUV Lausanne's spokesman Darcy Christen informed.
The German has been kept in neurorehabilitation unit of University Hospital of Lausanne (CHUV), which is considered as one of the best brain research institutions in the world. The former Mercedes driver will be given highest level of care to help him recover from the ski accident.
Christen said there are many VIP personals that are treated in the Hospital of Lausanne and the hospital staff makes sure that their privacy is not compromised. He added that they have taken special measures to protect Schumacher's privacy.
"In this area of Switzerland there are many personalities and so we do receive patients who are very well-known," Christen said. "We therefore have "Regime VIP" in place for such people. Their privacy, like all patients' privacy, needs to be respected and they may need heightened security."
"In this particular case we have implemented special measures but I cannot elaborate on this," he added.
One of the sources close to Schumacher's family said that his family is in a positive mood after the seven-time winner transferred from Grenoble Hospital. He added that the family is feeling confident after the Hurth-born showed some signs of communication.
"It was a big step mentally for the family to move from Grenoble Hospital," the source said. "The transfer doesn't mean that his condition improved markedly in the last few weeks. But he no longer needed to be in intensive care and a programme of rehabilitation is now under way."
"He is still going in and out of consciousness but he is having more moments of consciousness more regularly than in April," he added. "He certainly can't talk but there is some degree of communication. His doctors and family speak to him but he gets tired very quickly and needs a lot of rest. So this is kept to a minimum."
