Disgusted with wheelchair services

janer1967

I was referred for new wheelchair back in April last year and heard nothing 

In nov I had a service on my chair and they put in urgent request for review as my current chair no longer meets my needs 

They came out to measure the doors but insisted I need to attend clinic so I explained I.cant go anywhere on my own so needed to be when I could have someone with me

They sent me appt for Monday and I can't get anyone to go with me so I called to rearrange 

After getting very frustrated and upset with their lack of understanding of my situation of not being able to go to unfamiliar places due to severe eyesight . They said if I don't attend rearranged appt.they will come and take my.wheelchaif away 

That would leave me unable to do anything as I can't walk 

I am totally disgusted and I am going wheelchair shopping now to purchase my own so I can tell them to come collect their chair from the bottom of the local lake 

Rant over !!

Sandy_123

@janer1967 that is totally disgusting . Can they really do that?  Is there anyone who you can complain to about this, within the department. Doesn't sound very fair to me.

janer1967

Once I have a new chair I will be complaining I cant believe a therapist actually said that to me threatening to take away my wheelchair if I didn't attend next appt 

They were happy to ignore my referral for 6 months now suddenly saying my chair isn't suitable so they have to replace it 

I have been considering buying my own for a while so I can get something more comfortable as the ones they provide I don't think are suitable for full time users but this is forcing the issue 

66Mustang

It doesn't surprise me that a service would be that unreasonable.

But unacceptable I agree.

I'm sure they couldn't come into your house to take it away though.

Maybe take it from under you while you are out and about...wouldn't put it past them!!

Good luck finding one yourself, hopefully you can get what you want and it will have no strings attached.

chiarieds

That's definitely unacceptable. Would you consider contacting your GP to enlist their help? Obviously you can't be left without a wheelchair, which I'm sure they'd agree.

janer1967

In reality they couldn't do this as I would be sat in ot if they came for it so other than tipping me out of it they couldn't take it 

The point remains that a professional therapist actually said this 

I will take it further once I no longer need their services concerned if I did it now and needed a repair or something a complaint would affect this 

66Mustang

I wish you luck with taking it further, but in my experience (not with wheelchair services but with other things) all you can really do is write a letter which will go in the bin.

I hope you have better luck than me though.

janer1967

I tend to agree @66Mustang they won't do anything and no doubt will be denied anyway 

Even if they respond won't benefit me 

Just annoyed they can treat people this way but it's just another example of how disabled people have to fight for just the basic things to help them live some sort of life 

66Mustang

I agree @janer1967

I am having issues with a company who have blocked my account for security reasons and will only let me ring up customer support.

I have used the phone for a few minutes a few times now but still couldn’t manage a long call to a stranger so basically I have lost access to the service until I am able to make the call.

At least it’s something I can aim for in the future, but what if it was a deaf person or someone similar.

janer1967

That's not good could you Google the company and find out who the ceo is and send an email to them @66Mustang

66Mustang

That’s a good idea @janer1967 might try it, though they probably get lots of emails a day so might miss it, but has to be worth a try. Thanks 

OverlyAnxious

Out of interest, what sort of measurements need to be taken at a clinic instead of at home for a wheelchair?  Surely it's based on weight, height and width which could easily have been measured at the same time as the doors?

Sadly this is the sort of thing I come across regularly in health services myself due to not being able to travel or use phones etc.  I've come to expect it with totally hidden disabilities but I would have expected a bit more understanding around travelling with a VI!  Each service seems to focus in on one very small area and anything outside of that is given a 'your problem, not ours' kind of attitude.

I do hope you get it resolved quickly, and if you're in a position to buy one privately then hopefully that'll be less stressful in future, as well as more comfortable long term.

littleacorn

I have in the past contacted my MP and Director of Social Care regarding bad experience from my local wheelchair services. They moved very quickly following that to address the issues. Maybe it might be worth speaking to them or writing a letter or email. 

Juat as a side note i know someone who had issues with there eye sight and tney removed his wheelchair altogether as they said he was a danger to himself and the public!

janer1967

@littleacorn that's interesting how can they remove a chair if you can't walk even if visually impaired 

@OverlyAnxious they did all measurements when they did home visit 
My concern was they said if my doors are not wide enough for chair I need would have to adapt property which I'm not going there as its a new build and ha wouldn't do it and end up losing my home for the sake of wheelchair 

UPDATE

Ordered new chair today which I have purchased myself and will be delivered on thu 

MarkM88

@janer1967 I’m glad you have ordered yourself one. 

I would still complain though, for me it would be out of principle, they should never have treated you like this. 

alexis39

Had really bad and one good experiences with wheelchair services over the years with my mum before she passed which left me not wanting to ask for help but the doctors actually wrote letter and ok it still took nearly a year but I got a electric chair which has changed my life but few years ago when I had an assessment for new grab rails the social worker said that I should buy my own as there was a two year waiting list but it turned out she never put referrals in even though I said I would wait as I couldn’t afford to buy one

hope it all works out some people shouldn’t be in that job 

littleacorn

They took the powerchair away because of his poor eye sight and he had to have a manual chair and someone to push. It took away his independence. 

janer1967

@littleacorn that makes a bit more sense and I do tend to agree to some degree 

You need to have a certain level of vision to operate power chair 

I have electric chair I keep for outside use (not from wheelchair services ) but I rarely use it now due to sight as have had few accidents due to not being able to see 

I can only use it if in familiar places and with someone walking beside me holding my hand 

You do lose independence when you need pushing everywhere 

It was my manual chair they were threatening to take away