Emergency! Father Needs Expensive Drug To Save Sight

Sarahsaver

margaretclare wrote: »

The OP wrote in post#1 that Dad is already blind in one eye.

I know, thanks I just was stating the criteria for the injections where my Mum is.

Merrywidow

Missile - at the risk of boring you and everyone else - the night of the broken arm, a neighbour tried to massage it, "just a sprain", Dutch tour operator translated for the doctor and told me it was a sprain, doctor was off for dinner for 2 hours, got caught up in A&E with the guests from a BBQ that had been pitching plates at each other - that was a night etched in my memory. Oh I forgot, chap on the beach operating peddle boats, tutted and grunted that recently a friend of his had to have a leg rebroken because the hospital had set it wrong, "I'd get it checked out the moment you get home"!!!!!!!!

Needless to say it was fine. Althea was so quiet in the early 70's. We were staying in a flat on the beach of Albir, one little cafe on the beach - went there three years running. Must see what its like now.

Merrywidow

Almost forgot. Had to pay 2,500 pecetas (spelling?) for getting the arm fixed. That cleaned us out and we had to shoot to the bank first thing to cash some travellers cheques (the good old days). As I had signed them I was in trouble - all I had was 5 swollen sausage like fingers and there was no way I was going to sign anything. Had to wire our bank in Holland to wire money back before we could get to the chemist for the painkillers. If I've forgotten any more of the nightmare I will of course share it with you!!!!

By the way - my mother was blind in one eye, got macular degeneration in the other and all she got was drops. She is now blind to all intents and purposes with a touch of glucoma to round it all up. I guess the case we are fighting for has the wet kind of macular, that can be helped my medication and surgical intervention. Lets pray he gets it. The Daily Express likes crusades of this kind and invariably they swing it. Good luck.

missile

Had to wire our bank in Holland

Je ben Nederlander?

It is great you can laugh about it now, but I guess it was not so funny at the time?

I had a skiing accident and landed up in hospital in Morzine with a dislocated shoulder. I got discharged late at night when there was a dragon of a nurse on duty. My French is pretty poor and the only thing she said, which I could understand was Visa or Amex.

Appologies to OP for side tracking her post.

Merrywidow

Ik ben geen Nederlander, Ik was met een Nederlander getrouwt. Ik ben Engelse door en door. Maar Nederland is een heerlijk land. Ik heb daar 30 jaar gewoond. Are you keeping up? Ben je en Nederlander?

My husband and I went Skiing - way back when. He refused to wear goggles and ended up in Austria in hospital with snow blindness. Another vacation up the spout.

As a 'throw in' my husband worked for Amex in London before he died. They do a lovely line in widow's pensions.

Merrywidow

Sorry OP - we are only too aware of the seriousness of your problem. We have all been thru some horrors at times - laughing will help. Its got me thru a horrendous time recently. My mother is a case in part - blindness is the pits, my mother has lost all quality of life but she can still laugh at it.

Sarahsaver

i suppose from the NHS 'point of view blindness is not life threatening.
i have met people who have been blind from birth and they have had 'quality of life'
i can imagine the discussions when they are setting budgets in NHS trusts. Do they potentially save lives or prevent a non life threatening condition? it's not nice but its the way they have to think.

I DO sympathise, my Mum's sight is appalling, just about gone in one eye and the other has AMD, cataracts which recur often, and diabetic retinopathy.

Mojisola

Sarahsaver wrote: »

i have met people who have been blind from birth and they have had 'quality of life'

I think it's a bit different when an older person becomes blind because it's so much harder to adapt to the situation. That's why they tend to need more help.

Sarahsaver

Sure it is definitely. took my Mum ages to accept she needed 'visual aids'.
her Dad went blind and he refused to have a guide dog or even a tape recorder for talking books.

Steve_xx

The point is that we are supposed to have a national health service that should care for all of us indiscriminately. If a person is going blind, but can be helped with drugs, then to my mind that drug ought to be afforded to the person.

It could be argued that people who smoke should not readily be afforded treatment if they fall ill as a result of their habit. Yet of course they are helped, and rightly so. Who, when they're ill, wants to be worrying about where the cash will come from to make them better? It is bizarre that people are contemplating having to traipse off to Wales or Scotland because they need a particular drug and it is bizarre that the health service has become somewhat fragmented in this way.