"It made such a positive difference to my recovery"

I would like to express my heartfelt appreciation to both the Perth City Community Rehabilitation Team and the District Nursing Service working out of Drumhar Health Centre and the out of hours service.

Following major surgery for bladder cancer last October, I needed a lot of support at home. The above services started seamlessly as soon as I was discharged from hospital; I did not have to wait, so my recovery and rehabilition, alongside essential nursing care, commenced immediately which was very reassuring.

On discharge, I was anaemic and weak; I had lost the use my left leg; I had two urinary catheters to manage; and I was struggling to carry out normal activities in and out of my home. I was exhausted and demoralised. I had no idea how much I would be able to recover, for example, how much mobility I would regain (which was a colossal blow as I had always been a very active person).

Karys, my occupational therapist did a thorough and holistic assessment resulting in the installation of aids around my home which enabled me to function as safely and independently as possible. She understood the psychological consequences of what was happening to me, and continued to visit as my rehabilitation progressed, exploring goals (such as voluntary work) beyond those relating to physical health so that I could imagine myself rejoining the world and getting in touch with the person I once was.

I felt lost in general, and in particular I felt that I had lost my identity. It was quite a lonely place to be. Karys was a great listener, and a great source of emotional support. The continuity of her support over a number of months helped me feel less isolated, more myself, and that I was getting somewhere.

Aimee, my physiotherapist was brilliant at keeping me motivated and hopeful with regard to regaining the movement of my left leg. She was cheerful and positive and realistic about the exercises she gave me to do in between visits, ie, she didn't give me a great long list of exercises which would have seemed overwhelming and put me off (given that I was also weak and dealing with two catheters).

Instead I had a short list of targeted exercises (which changed as I improved) which were more manageable and which I did religiously. She was so encouraging, pointing out areas of improvement when I felt I had stalled. It worked. Over time, I went from using a walking frame, to two crutches, to one crutch, to two walking sticks, to one walking stick, and finally to walking unaided. I was so relieved; loss of mobility had been more distressing to me than my cancer diagnosis. If you read this, Aimee, I go hill walking now.

I am deeply grateful to the district nursing service based at Drumhar Health Centre, and the out of hours team, who all were friendly, professional and kind, and did their very best in the provision of different aspects of aftercare and urgent support. They took care of my stents, taught me how to use and change a two-piece urostomy bag, completely new to me, and they patiently supervised me until I could it do it properly.

They made it clear that they were there for me if I needed them which was very reassuring. The out of hours team dealt with an urgent situation that arose when a delivery of catheters failed to appear, This meant I had no means to drain urine from my neo-bladder, a serious issue as at that point I did not have a urostomy bag, meaning that urine would constantly leak onto my body and potentially back up towards my kidneys. They tracked down the type of catheter I needed at Ninewells Hospital, and although this turned out to be not long enough to fully empty the bladder, it did relieve the pressure and minimise the leakage.

In the end they came up with an improvised solution that enabled me to fully drain the bladder to keep me going until the following day when I would have access to the right kind of catheter. It was a very stressful time but they stuck with me until a satisfactory outcome was reached.

All in all, joined up services - prompt, reliable, professional and kind - which made such a positive difference to my recovery.