"To the staff that changed my life"

I went in to hospital due to a broken humerus bone on my right arm. I was in Bunbury for one week and then in Busselton for 3 weeks for rehab. I then stayed with a friend who picked me up from Busselton which was good as I had company, given that I live by myself. After a while I wanted to go back home but I felt very alone and overwhelmed with everything going on. At this point, I didn’t know what to do – I wanted company but also needed to work things out on my own, so my friend stayed with me for a while.

Whilst at home, I started to experience a really bad bowel which I believe is a bug that I must’ve caught while in hospital. So I went back to Bunbury Hospital and they did a colonoscopy and confirmed there was nothing wrong. My arm was still in a sling during that time in hospital and I also explained that I had developed mental health problems after my initial fall which resulted in the injury, and that it was all getting too much.

When I came home from hospital that time, I was completely bummed out and I was home alone. But then I started getting phone calls from people at the hospital checking in on me and wanting to make appointments to talk to me. Millie, the social worker was the first person who came out to visit me before I dealt with the following staff members, whom I refer to as the ‘Rachel effect’:

-Rachel the OT

-Rachel the physio

-Rachel the social worker

All of them, including Millie, were impressively professional in their approach and always smiling and warm, you can tell that they just want the best for you. They were very patient with me especially when it came to trying new movements and exercises that I couldn’t do because of the pain.

They definitely really made a difference and I started to think about the fact that I’m going to be alone again as the visits are finishing up next week. But then I thought, I’ve actually getting stronger not only physically but also mentally since I started interacting with the people I’ve named, and I think they absolutely deserve the recognition for all that they’ve done for me. I hope that they continue to offer their services to the community, because they have definitely changed my life for the better.