A VALE grandmother waits in anguish

[Guest guest]

My HIV anguish

A VALE grandmother waits in anguish this week to find out if she is one of

the 1,100 patients across Worcestershire and Birmingham facing the possible

threat of HIV or Hepatitis B.

The woman received an official letter on Tuesday morning as part of major

patient recall telling her that she was at risk of having contracted both

life-threatening diseases after a healthcare worker in the area was

diagnosed with both conditions.

" I received the letter on Monday and it was a complete shock to me, I didn't

know what to think, " said the woman whose identity the Journal has agreed to

protect.

continued...

" The first thing I did was phone my daughter but she was more upset with the

news than I was and when my son found out he was livid. "

She added: " My daughter phoned me back a little later and told me that the

news was on teletext, so I had a read and found that it affected over 1,000

people.

" I was feeling angry at the time but finding that out made me feel a bit

selfish as I thought, what if other people don't take this news as well as

me? The letters we received weren't exactly sympathetic considering we are

all facing a potentially life-threatening illness. "

She has now booked in for a blood test next week at Evesham Community

Hospital to determine whether or not she has contracted either virus. The

results are expected in three weeks.

The Evesham patient is part of the recall as she had an operation on her

foot in 2001 and all those treated by the orthopaedic staff member over a

six year period have been contacted. She is currently waiting for another

operation on a toe but says the whole experience has put her off going to

hospitals where you think you should be safe.' She also admits the news has

affected her sleep, but is remaining positive, adding: " I just have to go

along as usual, I have a lot of things to keep my mind occupied. I am not

nervous about taking the test, I just want to know because all I can do at

the moment is wait. "

As well as the 71 patients treated at Evesham Hospital, 597 from the Royal

Orthopaedic Hospital in Birmingham, 431 from the andra Hospital in

Redditch and 62 from Kidderminster Hospital have also been invited in for

blood tests, bringing the total to 1161.

http://www.thisisevesham.co.uk/display.var.1012961.0.my_hiv_anguish.php

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[Guest guest]

My HIV anguish

A VALE grandmother waits in anguish this week to find out if she is one of

the 1,100 patients across Worcestershire and Birmingham facing the possible

threat of HIV or Hepatitis B.

The woman received an official letter on Tuesday morning as part of major

patient recall telling her that she was at risk of having contracted both

life-threatening diseases after a healthcare worker in the area was

diagnosed with both conditions.

" I received the letter on Monday and it was a complete shock to me, I didn't

know what to think, " said the woman whose identity the Journal has agreed to

protect.

continued...

" The first thing I did was phone my daughter but she was more upset with the

news than I was and when my son found out he was livid. "

She added: " My daughter phoned me back a little later and told me that the

news was on teletext, so I had a read and found that it affected over 1,000

people.

" I was feeling angry at the time but finding that out made me feel a bit

selfish as I thought, what if other people don't take this news as well as

me? The letters we received weren't exactly sympathetic considering we are

all facing a potentially life-threatening illness. "

She has now booked in for a blood test next week at Evesham Community

Hospital to determine whether or not she has contracted either virus. The

results are expected in three weeks.

The Evesham patient is part of the recall as she had an operation on her

foot in 2001 and all those treated by the orthopaedic staff member over a

six year period have been contacted. She is currently waiting for another

operation on a toe but says the whole experience has put her off going to

hospitals where you think you should be safe.' She also admits the news has

affected her sleep, but is remaining positive, adding: " I just have to go

along as usual, I have a lot of things to keep my mind occupied. I am not

nervous about taking the test, I just want to know because all I can do at

the moment is wait. "

As well as the 71 patients treated at Evesham Hospital, 597 from the Royal

Orthopaedic Hospital in Birmingham, 431 from the andra Hospital in

Redditch and 62 from Kidderminster Hospital have also been invited in for

blood tests, bringing the total to 1161.

http://www.thisisevesham.co.uk/display.var.1012961.0.my_hiv_anguish.php

_________________________________________________________________

Get FREE company branded e-mail accounts and business Web site from

Microsoft Office Live

http://clk.atdmt.com/MRT/go/mcrssaub0050001411mrt/direct/01/