Terminally ill Heswall woman told she has to pay for own care by health chiefs

Aug 24 2011 by Liza Williams, Wallasey News

A TERMINALLY ill woman was told she would have to pay for her own care by hospital chiefs.

Teresa Makowski, 83, from Heswall, was diagnosed with lung cancer, which has now spread to her bones.

But after a series of assessments and meetings her daughter Helena was told her mum did not meet the criteria for “continuing care”, and would have to fund visits from health staff herself.

The cost is currently £1,900 a month.

Teacher Mrs Makowski, who lives in Buckinghamshire, travelled to Wirral to look after her mum at the beginning of the summer holidays but sas she is frightened what will happen when she goes back to work.

She said: “My mum doesn’t have long left, so this has been a difficult enough time as it is without the financial side.

“Mum was admitted to Arrowe Park in early July with advanced lung cancer, but two weeks later they called and said there was nothing they could do for her, and that she needed to be sent to a nursing home.

“I didn’t want this to happen and neither did my mum.

“But there was very little compassion and I felt they just wanted to get rid of her.

“I had no choice but to refuse discharge. She did eventually come home and I have been with her, but soon we will get a bill for the help we had so far.”

Mrs Makowski claimed several officials said her mum would qualify for NHS care, but that this was later denied.

An Arrowe Park spokeswoman said the trust could not comment on individual cases because of patient confidentiality, but that bosses were “dealing directly” with Mrs Makowski about the issue and added that they would be working with other partner agencies involved in the patient’s care.