In another sad indictment of the wretched state of our health system, a tearful wife was forced to plead for doctors to help her terminally ill husband, after she was told the man was blocking a bed.
Sally Lydon was forced to sign a document agreeing to take her husband (who has Motor Neuron Disease) home before surgeons were willing to help her.
According to Ms. Lydon, her husband was having difficulty breathing and needed an emergency surgical procedure, but doctors simply said ‘he has a terminal disease,’ and refused further help.
After much pleading, and signing a document that would see her carrying her husband home after the procedure, the operation was carried out.
It also emerged that the HSE are also attempting to renege on a prior agreement to fund the man’s aftercare. The family raised €170,000 towards care, which the HSE said would cost around €300,000. The health authority initially agreed to fund aftercare.
However, a letter was furnished to the family two weeks ago saying that the cost of care would rise to €700,000, which the HSE was not prepared to pay for.