Julie Clark who has hereditary motor and sensory neuropathy (sometimes known as Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease), which affects muscles in the hands and lower legs, was assessed for a powered chair with features she did not need.

Mrs Clark said, “My old, privately funded wheelchair was wearing out so I approached the local wheelchair services. I had to wait seven months to get an assessment and then a further eight months just to get a voucher towards the cost of the chair. There’s only one consultant for the whole of East Anglia, so lack of staffing must account for some of the delay.

“I don’t think the assessment I got was appropriate. I wasn’t listened to and was left alone for over half an hour - I felt trapped and couldn’t get out. I was treated like a child and the staff were very rude. I will never, ever return to the wheelchair centre. They ended up recommending features on the chair that I don’t need, like tilt in space and lights which were a waste of money.

”It was a very demoralising experience because you are limited to what is provided on the NHS.”

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richard | 17 Jul 2006

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