Cill na Martra couple ‘delighted’ after home help hours are restored
‘IT GOES TO SHOW JUST HOW FAST THINGS CAN MOVE WHEN A CASE LIKES OURS COMES UNDER THE SPOTLIGHT’
A GRANDMOTHER from Cill na Martra who suffered as stroke while on a visit to England and returned home to find her disabled husband’s home help service had cut has said she was “delighted” the service had been restored.
However, Eileen Sorenson said that she hoped her case highlighted what she described as the “uncoordinated and chaotic” home care regime so that other families do not have to go through what she and her husband James had to.
The couple’s plight made headlines after Eileen highlighted their situation on Patricia Messinger’s C103 FM Cork Today programme.
She explained that her husband had a stroke eight years ago. A fall two years ago resulted in James suffering a massive head injury that left him with brain damage and given just days to live.
He did pull through but is unable to get out of bed without assistance or dress himself due to his medical condition.
The couple recently visited their daughter in England, a trip that was initially meant to last for ten days. However, this turned into a 13-week stay after their son-in-law fell ill and the couple decided to extend their visit to help mind their grandson.
Four weeks ago the couple were driving back to Ireland when Eileen suffered a stroke behind the wheel of their car.
“I got into the car and was driving home. I hit a taxi and I reversed. Then I went around the corner and I hit a lamp post. I drove down the road about a mile,” said Eileen.
“I turned around and was found slumped over the wheel of the car outside my daughter’s house. My son in law dragged me out. I don’t remember any of this. I ended up in the Stroke Unit in Watford General. I was lucky I hadn’t gone on the Motorway as if I had gone on the M4 there would have been mayhem.”
After 10 days in hospital, Eileen underwent physio and occupational therapy in her daughter’s home and saw a psychologist on three occasions. “This was in sharp contrast to the situation in Ireland, where I can’t even get a physio service” said Eileen.
“Then I decided I needed to get home, so my son-in-law drove us home. I was delighted to be back in Cill na Martra and I kissed the ground like the Pope when I arrived”.
However, her joy was short lived, after she was informed that vital home help hours for James had been reduced, with the 90-minute service they had received daily cut to just 30-minutes in the evening.
The HSE told her they had not cut the hours, but did not have anyone to cover.
“I could not get James out of bed because I am paralysed down my left arm and leg. My daughters are in Australia and England so could not help out, but thankfully our neighbours were very good to us” said Eileen.
“The district nurse came out and said there is nothing available. She said to me ‘people are putting relatives into homes now if they can’t get the support at home’. I didn’t want to do that. James did not want to go into a nursing home. He started crying and said ‘you are trying to dump me after 54 years of marriage. He was frightened.”
Speaking to the Corkman this week Eileen said that James’ home help hours had thankfully been restored to their previous level as of last Tuesday. She said she was now hoping to get some assistance for herself as she is now physically unable to care for James on her own.
“It goes to show just how fast things can move when a case such as ours comes under the spotlight. I hope it serves to ensure that no family has to go through what we have over the past few weeks,” said Eileen.
“It also shows the uncoordinated and chaotic manner in which the home help service is run. I can only hope that the HSE take a good long look at how they run the service so this never happens again.”
The Corkman was unable to secure a comment from the HSE at time of going to press.