Struggle goes on
Calderwood accused of failing sick son
Mum hits out
ANDREA LAMBROU
Scotland’s former chief medical officer has been criticised by a campaigning East Kilbride mum for breaking a promise to help save her epileptic son.
Lisa Quarrell hit out at shamed Dr Catherine Calderwood saying she gave her desperate family the runaround.
She had promised to support the family as they fought for a NHS-funded medical cannabis prescription for Lisa’s son Cole Thomson.
But Lisa says the former CMO failed to follow through on her promise, leaving the family stranded in their fight to save the seven-year-old.
She told the News: “We had a meeting in January in Parliament with the Scottish cross-party group on medicinal cannabis.
“The group were instrumental in getting the CMO to the table and backed our calls for access to an NHS prescription.
“The CMO stated her department would help in overcoming barriers to the prescription issue – in reality all they did was line up a second opinion and advise I apply for a crisis grant.
“She promised to help find a solution for everyone – but I feel these were just empty promises.”
Dr Calderwood handed in her resignation on Sunday after she ignored her own lockdown rules by making two trips to her holiday home with family amid the global pandemic.
She gave her notice to First Minister Nicola Sturgeon following a fierce backlash from the public, with police issuing her a warning over the matter.
Newlandsmuir youngster Cole suffers from severe epileptic seizures and relies on imported cannabis oil to survive.
The coronavirus pandemic has meant those needing medicinal cannabis are struggling to get access to the drug, with Lisa saying “they are the forgotten patients that no one wants to help”.
Ex-cop Lisa, who admitted smuggling the unlicensed medicine from the Netherlands before receiving a private prescription, is now terrified his £1000 a month supply is going to run out.
With most of Europe now on lockdown due to COVID-19, she only has a three-week supply left.
She said: “I’ve been given the runaround for months now – it’s so unfair and exhausting.
“Everything they’ve asked me to do I’ve done, yet I’m no further forward. I have no fundraising money left and no way of raising more – I need the Scottish Government’s help and it needs to be now.”
Lisa, who is self -isolating with Cole and his 10-year-old brother Dylan, applied for the crisis grant only to be rejected via email within five minutes and passed back to the NHS.
Without the medicine,
Cole is likely to begin having seizures again and be admitted back into hospital – and Lisa warns “he could die”.
“The CMO told me to my face at this meeting she was making me and Cole her immediate priority and I believed her,” she told us.
“After leaving that meeting it was clear these were just words. I feel really sad and let down by not only her but by the Scottish Government.”
The Scottish Welfare Fund said it only provides crisis grants for food or power or community care grants for household items, they do not provide funding for medicines.
A Scottish Government spokeswoman said: “We recognise how anxious Ms Quarrell must feel and the Health Secretary has repeatedly expressed her understanding of the very difficult situation any parent will face in such circumstances.
“Our officials continue to be in touch with Ms Quarrell and we are exploring all the available options to find a solution for her and Cole.
“We would like to assure Ms Quarrell and those in similar situations that we remain committed to supporting research in this area so evidence can be gathered in a way that will benefit as many patients as possible.”