South African Familys Hard Times In Abu Dhabi

11-08-2020

2020

LOCAL

A South African family living in Abu Dhabi have been left struggling to deal with their son's long-term care bills after job losses. Neville Alberts, 55, the family's breadwinner, lost his managerial job at an automotive dealer earlier this year, making it harder to pay for care for his son Tristan, 21, who suffered a traumatic brain injury and respiratory failure in 2017. Speaking to Gulf News, Neville Alberts, 55, said: “I have lost track of the amount of money we owe. My son’s care at the rehabilitation centre alone costs 39,000 AED (8,124 GBP) a month. "Then, there are the outstanding bills at the hospital where he was first admitted after the injury, and with the banks from which we have borrowed to pay medical bills, and our rent payments are coming up. Amidst all this, I have been unemployed since January.” (https://bit.ly/3ipJsxX) Tristan was admitted to intensive care in November 2017 after taking unprescribed insulin supplements led to his slipping into a coma. After three months in intensive care, he was transferred to the post-acute care centre he now resides in, where he is dependent on staff to feed and medicate him. But now, financial pressures threaten the family's ability to safeguard that care. Alberts added: “Because of the pandemic, I have not been able to find a job. The bills are continuing to grow, and I already owe the banks 300,000 AED (62,534 GBP) as I had to borrow to fund Tristan’s treatment. Moreover, Tristan’s progress has stalled lately. He needs brain scans to guide his treatment, but each scan costs between 5,000 AED (1,042 GBP) to 10,000 AED (2,084 GPB), and that is money I simply do not have.” The family have set up a JustGiving page to crowdfund for the rehabilitation costs and are aiming to raise some 480,000 AED (100,000 GBP). So far, they have raised 102,000 AED (21,349 GBP). (https://bit.ly/3irecP4) “We, as a family, really and truly miss our son and brother. It has taken a huge toll on us over the past 32 months. The stress and tension of it all is not easy to handle at times,” Alberts said. (T4/ends)