Tough call for Goan family in Dubai

Tough call for Goan family in Dubai  


… as hospital bills soar and air charges to bring ailing grandma home will cost Rs 9 lakh 

Herald Review July 6, 2014 


With each passing day that Rosalind Fernandes spends in the ICU at NMC Hospital, Dubai, her medical bills keep mounting. The 66- year-old grandmother from Margao has been in the ICU since June 10 and breathes with the help of a ventilator. Her stage four cancer has spread to her lungs and one of her lungs has already collapsed.

Clifford Fernandes, her only child cannot afford to keep her in hospital or have her discharged due to her condition. He would like to bring her back home to Goa for treatment but this is turning out to be complicated and costlier than he had ever imagined.

Clifford stays in Abu Dhabi and works in the sales section of a hotel. He travels back and forth and has taken emergency leave for one month to care for his mother.

His earnings go towards his family’s daily expenses. He has a ten month- old daughter to care for and his wife is six months pregnant.

His mother was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2010 and was operated in Mumbai.

She has been visiting her son over the years. When she visited Clifford’s cousins in Dubai this year they took her to the hospital when they noticed her heavy breathing.

Hospital bills have mounted to more than AED further.

The family has taken a decision to send her back to Goa as medical expenses are too high and insurance isn’t covering it either.

If brought back to Goa by flight, Rosalind will require a portable ventilator and a medical team to accompany her. She will need to be transferred directly to the hospital. Clifford expects this will cost him nothing less than AED 60,000 ( approx Rs 9 lakh). The hospital insists that they send their own doctor to accompany Few airlines want to take the risk and the family has narrowed down on Air India as this is the only direct flight to Goa which allows a stretcher case to be taken. The airlines in turn have to seek approvals and clearances from Dubai airport authorities and the health ministry.

The complicated procedure and delay is taking a toll on the family. Each day that Rosalind spends on hospital costs the family AED 4200 ( approx Rs 69,000).

Clifford says churches in Dubai and Sharjah have donated some money and are helping liaise with the insurance company and the hospital for a settlement. An important lesson he learnt, he says, is to do quarterly checkups after the required cancer treatment. His mother couldn’t have her regular check- up and the family never expected her cancer to spread so rapidly. LISA ANN MONTEIRO