Teh One Who Knocks
02-02-2017, 03:41 PM
Jen Mills for Metro.co.uk
http://i.imgur.com/0LYMNIyl.jpg
A pregnant woman who was turned away at the US border lost two of her babies after she went into labour during a flight to London, and is now unable to pay for the NHS care she received.
The Nigerian woman, named only as Priscilla, 43, was six months pregnant with quadruplets after having IVF treatment, which has a higher likelihood of multiple births.
She said she wanted to give birth in America as she had family there – but she was not allowed into the country as she couldn’t provide proof that she was able to pay for her medical care.
Her contractions started as she was mid-flight from Chicago to Heathrow, and she was rushed to hospital as soon as it landed.
Tragically, one of her babies died immediately, while another, named Deborah, died a few days later.
http://i.imgur.com/ciclMAAl.jpg
Elizah was born three months premature (Picture: BBC Hospital)
http://i.imgur.com/HOtLt7Fl.jpg
Priscilla admits she can’t pay the bill (Picture: BBC Hospital)
Her two surviving children, Elijah and Esther, were so premature they have had to be looked after in neonatal intensive care at a cost of £20,000 a week.
The cost of her complex birth and continued treatment of the babies has already reached £500,000, but Priscilla admits that there’s no way she can pay the money back, even if she worked every day for the rest of her life.
She said she didn’t plan to give birth in London, as she had been travelling back to Nigeria via Heathrow when she went into Labour.
The case is featured on the BBC2 programme Hospital, which will be screened tonight.
It shows the effect of so-called ‘health tourism’, which is when people from outside the UK are treated on the NHS.
Terry Facey, overseas visitor manager overseas visitor manager at Queen Charlotte’s and Chelsea Hospital, said the vast majority of cases are when people fall ill when they are already in the UK, for example when visiting relatives.
He is responsible for collecting money from foreign patients – but it isn’t always possible.
Priscilla told Terry on the programme: ‘I didn’t plan to come here.
‘It’s only money. Money can’t buy life. The last bill I had was £331,000 but – even if I worked every day – I would never earn that much money. My kids are priceless.’
In 2015/16, the Trust’s overseas patient charges were £4million, with Terry’s team managing to collect £1.6million.
Another of the patients Terry is chasing for money is Sonia, a 56-year-old woman from the Philippines who suffered heart problems while visiting her sister, who is a UK resident.
Cardiothoracic surgeon Rex Stanbridge saved her life, but she had complications and needed a bed in Intensive Care – costing thousands of pounds per day.
NHS hospitals are not able to turn away patients if their lives are in danger.
http://i.imgur.com/0LYMNIyl.jpg
A pregnant woman who was turned away at the US border lost two of her babies after she went into labour during a flight to London, and is now unable to pay for the NHS care she received.
The Nigerian woman, named only as Priscilla, 43, was six months pregnant with quadruplets after having IVF treatment, which has a higher likelihood of multiple births.
She said she wanted to give birth in America as she had family there – but she was not allowed into the country as she couldn’t provide proof that she was able to pay for her medical care.
Her contractions started as she was mid-flight from Chicago to Heathrow, and she was rushed to hospital as soon as it landed.
Tragically, one of her babies died immediately, while another, named Deborah, died a few days later.
http://i.imgur.com/ciclMAAl.jpg
Elizah was born three months premature (Picture: BBC Hospital)
http://i.imgur.com/HOtLt7Fl.jpg
Priscilla admits she can’t pay the bill (Picture: BBC Hospital)
Her two surviving children, Elijah and Esther, were so premature they have had to be looked after in neonatal intensive care at a cost of £20,000 a week.
The cost of her complex birth and continued treatment of the babies has already reached £500,000, but Priscilla admits that there’s no way she can pay the money back, even if she worked every day for the rest of her life.
She said she didn’t plan to give birth in London, as she had been travelling back to Nigeria via Heathrow when she went into Labour.
The case is featured on the BBC2 programme Hospital, which will be screened tonight.
It shows the effect of so-called ‘health tourism’, which is when people from outside the UK are treated on the NHS.
Terry Facey, overseas visitor manager overseas visitor manager at Queen Charlotte’s and Chelsea Hospital, said the vast majority of cases are when people fall ill when they are already in the UK, for example when visiting relatives.
He is responsible for collecting money from foreign patients – but it isn’t always possible.
Priscilla told Terry on the programme: ‘I didn’t plan to come here.
‘It’s only money. Money can’t buy life. The last bill I had was £331,000 but – even if I worked every day – I would never earn that much money. My kids are priceless.’
In 2015/16, the Trust’s overseas patient charges were £4million, with Terry’s team managing to collect £1.6million.
Another of the patients Terry is chasing for money is Sonia, a 56-year-old woman from the Philippines who suffered heart problems while visiting her sister, who is a UK resident.
Cardiothoracic surgeon Rex Stanbridge saved her life, but she had complications and needed a bed in Intensive Care – costing thousands of pounds per day.
NHS hospitals are not able to turn away patients if their lives are in danger.