E-INTERVIEW with Michael Cunningham - Cystic Fibrosis ...

oom, en-suite etc., heaven. After five days my Mom
flew over and contacted the insurance company
immediately. That eighty euro extra we had paid
was now paying for both our flights home whenever
I was fit, and a nurse and oxygen if I needed it, also
wheelchair assistance from check-in to terminal.
However, that turned out to be a bit of a mess, as
were the insurance company. Adamant that I told
them I wanted to fly from Rome, (although I was in
a Florence hospital) they initially searched for the
wrong flights. It took a great many phone calls on
my Mom’s part to organise our flight. We must have
communicated with at least seven different people
in the insurance company but finally when the
Doctors gave clearance we were out of there within
twenty-four hours with Ryanair. To fly with anyone
else such as Aer Lingus or Lufthansa we would have
had to wait a little longer as they need 24 hour clearance
before allowing you on a flight. The airport
people messed up with the wheelchair and I ended
up being walked to my flight with two first aid men.
It was really ridiculous. The insurance companies
promised-taxi failed to be there when we landed
however we found our own and headed straight for
Vincent's - who were superb during all of this, liaising
with the various hospitals. For once I was happy
to see the place.
Really, when you think about it paying eighty euro
once-off for a two week holiday got me so much,
including our flight home. If you keep receipts of
hotels, expenses & records of phone calls you can
claim most of it back. The problem I had, and that
most people have is that you just don't think it will
happen to you. As corny as it sounds this experience
really shows that it can and does happen. No
matter how disorganised the insurance idiots are -
pay for insurance and insurance pays back. For
flights, for phone credit and for your own safety...
FF can’t empahsise enough just how important it is
to have adequate cover when you travel abroad. It
CAN happen to anyone, especially in hot countries
where you might not realise you are getting dehydrated.
Insure yourself and be certain you are covered
for flights home and nursing care if required.
The European Health Insurance Card (the old E11)
only entitles you to the state-funded health care
scheme in the country in which you are staying. It
will not cover any of the costs involved in transporting
you back to Ireland. (see webwatch for more)
13
NATIONAL CONFERENCE
By Patricia Duffy
The PWCF talk at this year’s CFAI Annual
Conference, Portmarnock, Dublin is dedicated to
the hardworking partners of pwcf everywhere!
Improved management of CF has lead to an
increased life expectancy of people with CF. The
CF Registry of Ireland currently shows a 58/42 %
split of paediatric pwcf versus adult pwcf. The adult
population is set to outnumber the paediatric population
by 2010 - there' no stopping us!
This is great news. At the same time, it's a journey
to unfamiliar places. Somewhere along the line,
probably in our teens, a light bulb turned on - and
the realisation that we have a chronic condition,
sunk in. This revelation inspired us to learn to manage
ourselves, to do our physio, to take our medications
& our nebulisers and to recognise when we
had chest infections requiring more intense IV
antibiotic treatment.
Our determination to get on with life and to manage
our condition as much as our health allows us
makes us stubborn. Stubborn to accomplish independence;
for many people with CF it is a fundamental
ambition to prove to ourselves that CF does
not manage us, and that CF needn't dictate our
identity.
Many of us will meet life-long partners along the
way. There are many physical, psychological and
emotional challenges to us meeting a partner in the
first instance (it's well known there are not enough
eligible men in Dublin!!!), but seriously, linking up
with someone brings a whole new set of hurdles for
us to cross. We are suddenly faced with the challenge
of letting a partner into our lives...
This is likely to be a slow process starting with simple
milestones such as admitting that it's not just "a
bit of a cold" or "a touch of asthma" & that's not a
pack of cigarettes in your pocket; it's your enzyme
case & you don't smoke. When you've got that bit
closer you feel brave enough to show your port-acath
scar or your knobbly fingernails or whatever!