The evening daddy came home and said 'your wee sister is in heaven'
Rodney Edwards • Published 9 Feb 2012 13:30
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Michelle Gildernew, chairperson of the Health Committee.
FOR Fermanagh and South Tyrone MP and MLA Michelle Gildernew, it's personal. She is the chair of the Assembly's health committee, and it's a role she is passionate about and has taken to with gusto.
Our health service is facing an uncertain and difficult future, but Ms.Gildernew appears determined that the voice of the people will be heard and she is calling for a more compassiate culture.
In an exclusive interview with the Impartial Reporter, Michelle says that she believes there is a lack of empathy and humanity for people in the system.
And recalling emotionally, the void left in her own family when her little sister was stillborn, she is determined to take the opportunity her position gives her to make the health service better for the people.
She also talks candidly about her views on the Compton Review and the effect it could have on families caring for the elderly.
Ms. Gildernew's role came to the fore recently and she has criticised Health Minister Edwin Poots for the way in which he handled the deadly Pseudomonas outbreak.
Four babies died in hospitals in Northern Ireland as a result of the bacterial infection; three in January, and one in December. The infection is understood to have spread from the taps in the neo-natal units.
A full investigation is currently being carried out on the orders of Mr. Poots, but says she believes "not enough was done" by the Health Minister, and added: "If your name is above the door that's where the buck stops".
"If the first wee baby who died in the Altnagelvin died because of an infection in the taps then we should not have had to wait until there were another three deaths before doing something about it. This bothers me. If that was me I would have changed the taps. I wouldn't have waited until someone said X, Y or Z. You use your gut instinct. You do what your heart tells you to do. If that was me then I would have been more decisive," she said.
An inquiry into the bug is ongoing and an interim report is expected by the end of March.
"I know all the babies in the neo-natal units are now being washed with sterile water, and no tap water is getting into contact with those children. I know they have upped the level of hygiene in terms of hand-washing and alcohol gels, as well," she said.
At no stage has there been any concern of a similar outbreak at the Erne Hospital.
A passion for "bringing change", Ms. Gildernew has spoken of her determination to improve health provisions in Fermanagh so that "inequalities" here can be dealt with.
She says her focus is on holding Edwin Poots and his department to account and giving people in this rural community "a voice".
"The whole focus shouldn't been on new equipment and the new hospital. The focus should be on giving people a voice, and that's what I intend to do. I am not good at keeping within the boundaries; I could do what I am supposed to do, but I want to broaden that out".
She spoke of a number of "crisis points" during her time as health chairperson so far and said there many things she has been progressing "as a woman", such as the Strep B and Life After Loss campaigns.
"I get the feeling that doctors don't really care: "That's a woman's thing. OK, you lost a baby - try again". There is a lack of compassion in the health service for people, often the most vulnerable people," she said.
Getting emotional, Ms. Gildernew revealed her family's heartbreaking experience of losing a child.
"When I was 10 years old I had a sister who was born stillborn. I'll never forget that evening when daddy came home and said: 'Your wee sister is in heaven'. I still find it difficult to talk about it. That has been a big void in our family. That's why it really upsets me when medical people say: "Well, she's young, she's healthy; she can have another one". You NEVER get over the loss of a child," she said.
Ms. Gildernew believes there are families who have been "brushed aside" by the health service here.
"The lack of empathy and humanity for people is incredible, and so sad. These are people in the caring profession who don't realise it, so talking to people who are involved in SANDS, Life after Loss and the Strep B campaign I believe we should be doing everything we can so no family has to go through the loss of a child. This is one piece of work as chairperson of the health committee that I want to see through to the end; I owe it to the families who have been campaigning and trying to raise awareness".
The MP talked about "inequalities" in health provisions in Fermanagh. She says there isn't enough currently being done to address such issues. In fact, before the interview took place she met with staff at Devenish College in Enniskillen who relayed to her their concerns that counselling services have been made available to 14 primary schools in Belfast, and not here in the West.
"You ask yourself, why not? We have issues like high self harm and suicide rates in Fermanagh. Rural isolation is a problem. I have listened to women telling me they can't get access to affordable childcare. If you are a 24-year-old who is going through a family breakdown or bereavement there is no statutory body for that person to get counselling. No matter where you look there are huge differences between services here and elsewhere - there is a mix match.
"One in four of us will experience mental health problems in our lifetime, but we don't talk about it in rural areas. When we hear about farm accidents that aren't accidents, and are potentially unreported suicides where people feel like they have the worries of the world on their shoulders, that is a concern for me. The fact is if you lived in Andersonstown you would be sign posted to a service that could help you cope, yet if you lived in Roslea the same service is not there," she said.
In relation to the Compton Review, Ms. Gildernew said she had an issue with its plans for residential care, and added "more could be done".
"I welcome the fact there's a move away from putting people into long-term residential care, but for the people who live in residential care who have lived in such care for so many years we need to be good to them for however long they are in them. We have seen the trauma in this area that families experience when residential homes are being closed down.
"I think we could do an awful lot better - if we spent money on this we would have more money for that, and would have better outcomes. There's not enough humanity, there's not enough investment for the future. From the age of 45 your blood pressure has an impact as to whether or not you are going to end up with dementia in later life. There's a figure that startled me, so I think there is so much more we can do right across the board".
And she described the name for Enniskillen's new hospital ("South West Acute Hospital") which was revealed last week, as "stupid".
"I am disappointed about the name; it should have been something a bit more sensible. There wasn't much public consultation on it. I know I was never asked. I think the name is stupid and people won't buy into it," she said.
Ms. Gildernew welcomed the hospital's progress, but stated: "I do not want to see us in 20 years with a hospital that is not sustainable. As the Fermanagh MP I want to see it and the quality of services it will provide protected in the long-term".
******
JUST days after this interview Michelle Gildernew was replaced temporarily as Chairperson of the Health Committee by her Sinn Fein colleague Sue Ramsay after she broke her leg.
The Fermanagh and South Tyrone MP fell down some stairs during a meeting at Leinster House two weeks ago, and her leg is now in plaster.
Speaking to us on Friday, she said: "I fell in front of TDs, loyalists, republicans, senators, you name it. I was so embarrassed. I was wearing knee high boots; I have good country woman's calves and the boots are hard to get on me anyway so they were giving me great support, and I drove home. When I took the boots off later I noticed the foot was badly swollen."
Ms. Gildernew visited the hospital that evening and had her leg x-rayed.
"I walked in and didn't make a big fuss. They thought it was an old injury because I had broken my ankle before. They put me in a strap, on a pair of crutches and sent me on my way. Then they phoned me on the Friday and said your leg is broken, will you please come back? I tramped about a week before I got the plaster on," she explained.
The politician is likely to be in plaster for the rest of the month, and will return to her health chairperson role when she's able to do so.
This article appeared in Impartial Reporter 09 Feb 12
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