Poor wheelchair service in Surrey is severely impacting Disabled People’s lives

Until Mid April 2022, A, who uses a wheelchair was a happy person with lots of interests.  A enjoyed going out with her husband to town for some shopping, to the garden centre for a slice of cake and out into her own garden to enjoy her plants and to catch some sun.  Essentially, A was living a normal active life with her husband and pets.

Then on a Wednesday in April, whilst A was at the doctors her wheelchair broke – luckily the surgery nurse found a replacement, which was a bit smaller than A’s but at least she could use it to get home.  The nurse also called Millbrook to let them know what happened and they said they couldn’t get anyone out to her until the Monday, the nurse pointed out that A needed the wheelchair to get around and they agreed to come the next day.

That was 6 months ago, it’s now December and since then A has had two replacement wheelchairs which turned out to be unsuitable.  A was not given a proper wheelchair assessment until November! The impact this situation has had on A’s mental health is significant.  A can no longer make plans to go out and about with her husband because she has developed a pressure sore from using a wheelchair that’s too small for her and now has to spend all day on the bed.  Despite complaints and help from The Coalition to try and get the situation resolved A still does not have a wheelchair that is suitable for her needs.  A is often in tears as she struggles with the pain and the loss of her independence.  A has been to see her GP who prescribed a cream for the pressure sore, but this has not made any difference.  A’s husband contacted the GP to let her know the cream did not seem to be working and the GP has said there is nothing more she can do to help her. 

A can’t do anything once she’s on the bed and often falls asleep during the day which leads to her not being able to sleep at night.  A doesn’t go out as much as she used to because she is in too much pain. A has had an assessment for a new chair but is still waiting to hear how long it will be before it arrives.   In the meantime, the only thing A can do is to lie on the bed, having missed social activities and meetings with friends, unable to run her Soap Facebook page and chat to people online.  The sadness is, we know A is not the only one.  There are other Disabled people who used to be independent and happy now living life confined to their homes and in pain because they have not been provided with the one thing they need to live their lives as they wish.