A heartbroken son said his Army veteran dad is ‘trapped’ in a hospital thousand of miles away from home after a horror medical emergency left him unable to speak
The family of a British Army veteran say he has been left “trapped” in a hospital abroad after suffering a devastating stroke.
Michael Blake, 66, was left paralysed down the right side of his body and unable to speak after collapsing on April 5. His son Terry, 43, said Michael moved out to Cambodia 16 months ago after retiring as a warrant officer in the British Army, and had last seen his dad four weeks ago.
Terry however revealed his shock when he recently saw his father, who he used to live with him in Shoebury, Essex, had been left on a gurney with just a saline drip after the medical emergency.
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The son revealed that Cambodia operates on a pay for care system and data protection laws means Terry is unable to access his dad’s insurance without consent, which he is currently unable to give.
The heartbroken son said: “I’d been to visit him not long before and it was the happiest I’d ever seen him since he left the Army. It seemed like for a long time he’d been searching for something and he’d finally found it, it’s turned into an absolute nightmare.”
On April 5, Michael suffered a stroke and was rushed to hospital, when his son received the news he flew out to the country to be by his side.
He said: “When I arrived, it was three-and-a-half days later and information was scattered as to what had happened. But he had been moved between two different hospitals before he reached Calmette Hospital in Phnom Penh. In that time, I understand he didn’t receive a lot of care and had been left on hospital trolleys.
“Those 24 to 48 hours after a stroke are imperative. I found him on a gurney in the hospital with just a saline drip. It took a day and a half to get him moved to the ICU and that was after I had contacted the embassy.”
The family had faced a massive issue with his dad’s insurance as he cannot verbally give consent in his condition. He said: “When I go to see him in the hospital, they give me the bill and tell me I need to pay it before I see it. I’m working with the Foreign Office and fighting to get a couple of different reports, including on his prognosis.”
He added: “We think he had insurance, but he is currently unable to speak or move so there are difficulties accessing it without some kind of consent from him. Everyone is pulling together, I’m lucky in that I have good friends and a close family who are pulling out all the stops to help however they can.”
Michael was released from the intensive care unit last week and is now on a general ward, while Terry has returned to the UK to fight to get him home. The family has set up a fundraiser to help raise money to bring him home – and face paying almost $10,000 (around £7,000) for his treatment in the Cambodia.
Terry said his dad had served 15 years in the Army, working out of Belize, Bosnia as a blue beret, Africa and Sudan. Michael went travelling around South East Asia three years ago and Terry said he “fell in love” with Cambodia.
Terry said: “Since he left the Army, he’s always been looking for somewhere where he can be at peace. He’s never really talked about his time in Bosnia but I know it affected him a lot.
“He stayed in the UK with me when I was diagnosed with testicular cancer and when he got the all-clear, he moved to Cambodia. I went to see him four weeks ago and it was the first time I’ve seen him happy and content. He’s got a really good social life with all the ex-pats out there.”
So far the family have paid $6,000 (around £4,000) for Michael’s treatment and will need to pay a further $2,000 (around £1500) to get him up to date with payments.
His family said they have been supported by the Royal British Legion with the hopes to repatriate Michael. A GoFundMe has been set up to help cover Michael’s medical bills. The fundraiser can be found here.
