STAYING ALIVE
A family of 12 understands the importance of having somewhere to stay when one child needs life-saving surgery. By Hannah Martin.
LIFE with 10 kids can be challenging at the best of times, let alone having two in separate Auckland hospitals more than 1600km from home.
That was the reality Carla and Grant Dick, from Invercargill, faced last year.
They knew before their son Nathanael was born he would one day need a kidney transplant.
But when his kidney function started to decline ‘‘rapidly’’ last January, the family had to get things moving earlier than anticipated.
Carla and the 10-year-old were sent to Starship Children’s Hospital in Auckland to prepare for the transplant while their homeschooled daughters, 12 and 8, stayed with their grandmother, also in Auckland.
In Invercargill, Grant was ready to donate his kidney when his pre-transplant tests revealed he had prostate cancer. Luckily, Nathanael’s brother Jesse, then 24, was a match and stepped in.
The Dick family aren’t alone in having to overcome long distances to reach life-saving hospital treatment.
Last year, Ronald McDonald Houses helped more than 3700 New Zealand families, who travel a combined 100,566 km from home for treatment each month. They have become a ‘‘home away from home’’ for these out-of-town families. And the fact Carla and Grant were able to stay in one for three months meant they could be there for both sons’ procedures in April: Jesse in Auckland Hospital, Nathanael in Starship.
Making the trip to Auckland was daunting, Carla said. ‘‘I didn’t know where I was going, what I would need, how much clothing to take, did I need groceries?’’
Instead of worrying, they focused on Nathanael’s recovery. ‘‘They’d taken care of everything, even the things you haven’t thought of.’’
The little things – like being able to wash clothes, or having a volunteer take you supermarket shopping – were organised.
‘‘You’re able to pop to the hospital and back again, when you live remotely or out of the area that’s not possible. I don’t how we would’ve done it,’’ Grant said.
There are around 40 public hospitals across the country, although only larger hospitals provide for more complex or specialised services, like transplants.
Ideally, a person would be treated close to home – but often that’s not possible, head of the senior doctors’ union Ian Powell said.
It comes down to population and sustainability, Powell said. You couldn’t perform complex cardiac surgery in every hospital, as there wouldn’t be the workload to maintain the skills needed.
‘‘If the volumes for it are less, it’s less likely... essentially, it’s about safety.’’
A Ministry of Health spokesperson said travelling for medical care can be ‘‘stressful, especially when long stays are required’’ and non-government agencies, such as Ronald McDonald Houses, provide ‘‘valuable support’’.
Ronald McDonald House’s House to House campaign – in which those taking part can walk, run, cycle or swim 210km to raise funds – is running March 1-31. You can register at housetohouse.org.nz