British woman’s dream Thailand trip turns surgery nightmare
A British woman thought she was embarking on a holiday of a lifetime to mark hers and husband’s golden wedding anniversary. But their romantic escapade to exotic Thailand has spiralled into a medical horror story that’s left the beloved granny fighting for her life!
Their sun-soaked plans were ruined when Pamela Gatehouse, from Carshalton, Surrey, fell victim to a terrifying medical saga that erupted into a full-blown emergency.
The pair had started their adventure in India, where the 69 year old contracted a pesky bout of tonsillitis. But what started as a simple sore throat soon became a life-threatening ordeal and the couple’s 50th anniversary bash quickly turned into an agonising race against time, said Pamela’s 71 year husband, John.
“Everything was going so well until the infection took a turn for the worse. We got to Thailand and her condition just deteriorated. It was terrifying.”
A gruesome wound opened on the side of Pamela’s neck, with pus reportedly “bursting out” and covering their hotel room bed in Pattaya in a scene straight out of a horror flick.
The British woman’s tragic tale took another twist when she was whisked to hospital just a day after her birthday on February 11. Doctors scanned her and uncovered a horrific secondary infection that turned her holiday into a nightmare, said John.
“She’s in so much agony. It’s soul-destroying seeing her like that. I never thought on our 50th anniversary, she’d be in hospital and I’d be in limbo. It’s devastating.”
The poor woman has endured a gruelling four surgeries to remove rotting flesh and skin, topping out their bills to a gut-wrenching £15,300 (651,000 baht).
Relying on maxed out credit cards, John is now struggling to hold back the financial tide threatening to crash down upon them. And the forecast looks grim.
Pamela faces four more expensive vacuum treatments and the couple is staring down the barrel of bills totaling at least £33,300 (1.42 million baht). Another desperate surgery is scheduled for next Monday, said John.
“Each time it’s just a waiting game. You never know if she’s going to survive, especially with her COPD. Plus, she’s got a rare blood type, O negative, and that doesn’t help us here. Everything’s mounting against us.”
Fears about finances loom large, with John sharing their nightmare of differentiation in treatment based on wealth.
“There’s a rate for Thais and a rate for tourists, as if we’re all loaded.”
Their travel insurance has conveniently failed them too, leaving them to shoulder every painful penny.
And as if their sky-rocketing medical bills weren’t enough, a flight home could cost £42,500 commercially. Don’t mention the £140,000 needed for an air ambulance, those sums would give anyone palpitations, added John.
“I’m trying to arrange a commercial flight with a stretcher.”
John has turned to the British Embassy, only to be met with suggestions to seek donations from friends and family. With two insurance policies hanging by a thread due to loopholes, the couple’s only option now seems to be public generosity.
Daughter Claire, back in Blighty, is doing all she can from home, using every ounce of strength to bring her parents back.
The couple’s trip wasn’t just a romantic getaway. They hoped warm weather would ease Pamela’s COPD symptoms, giving her relief that grey, dreary Britain just can’t provide.
But for now, John remains by his wife’s side every day, from morning until visiting hours end. Their plans have been hastily rewritten, as the couple is forced to face this unseeable chapter together 8,000 miles away from home.
To help the Gatehouses in their time of need, donations can be made to John’s fundraiser. Any penny can be the miracle they desperately seek.
The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office assures they are offering support but it’s the kindness of strangers that might be Pamela’s lifeline now.
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