Evening Telegraph (First Edition)
‘It’s been a tough year, we miss her every day’
Now her parents claim they are still waiting for answers over what they allege was a lack of medical care given to her.
Carol Hunter and her husband Dave say they are still grieving for their daughter, who died after battling cancer for three years.
Since her death they have written to health chiefs and also held a meeting with NHS Tayside, as they have concerns over the treatment she was given ahead of her passing.
Carol told the Tele today she had written to Ninewells Hospital, along with the Sick Kids’ Hospital in Edinburgh, about her daughter’s treatment. She said: “This is a very difficult time for us, but while we are still grieving we are also looking for answers about the lack of care given to Michaela.
“We have also had a meeting at Ninewells but so far we have heard nothing back.
“After we complained to the Sick Kids’ Hospital they got back to us asking us to specify what we were complaining about.
”We wrote back explaining that we were concerned that they hadn’t given her appropriate care.
“We were also worried because Michaela was due to have scans in the time leading up to her death and they never happened.
“Michaela was supposed to be given a scan in December. We were told nothing had been arranged and that she would be scanned in January, but she died on Boxing Day.”
Doctors first found tumours on Michaela’s spine when she was just two. She underwent medical treatment for three years as she battled the illness.
But in February last year, doctors gave her family the devastating news that the cancer had grown again. They were told at that time that Michaela would only have months left to live. Michaela was buried at Birkhill Cemetery last January.
Her parents have now turned her grave into a shrine to her memory, leaving many of her favourite toys there. Carol added: “It feels so right to make it special but so wrong because we don’t have our beautiful Michaela. It’s been a tough year for us without Michaela and we miss her every single day.”
Dr David Farquharson, medical director at NHS Lothian — which runs the Sick Kids’ Hospital — said: “NHS Lothian has received a complaint and the clinicians involved hope to meet with the family to discuss this in the near future.”
A spokeswoman for NHS Tayside said: “We have received a complaint from the family and have met with them to discuss their concerns.”
A YEAR ago today tragic Michaela Hunter died in hospital in Dundee, aged just five.