Personal message

As I begin writing, one of my grandma's favorite songs, which starts with "Where do I begin" by Shirley Bassey, comes to mind.

HUGE SIGH... but here I go.

On August 29, 2023, my grandmother, Rhoda Thys, was mugged on her way to the supermarket. Two perpetrators shoved her to the ground, resulting in a fracture. The doctors at Tygerberg explained that she needed a hip replacement to walk again. The hip replacement surgery took place on September 4, 2023.

On September 14, 2023, she was sent to Brackengate for physiotherapy and recovery. Despite recovering well, on October 13, 2023, we received a disturbing call from Brackengate hospital, informing us that she was unresponsive due to an infection whose details remain unclear. She was sent back to Tygerberg in a state of emergency and eventually regained consciousness, shockingly in a vegetative state. The medical update revealed that she had suffered a stroke, possibly occurring even before she entered the hospital.

On November 9, 2023, she was sent back to Brackengate for recovery. Her condition deteriorated to the point where the family began making funeral arrangements. Refusing to accept this grim report, my mom cried out to God, and miraculously, my grandmother is still alive.

On December 21, 2023, after learning about a severe 8 cm deep bed sore on the sacral area not responding well to treatment, my mom and aunt demanded her discharge. To their surprise, she had multiple bed sores, not just the severe one recorded. My mother, making a conscious decision, sacrificed everything to take care of her full time.

Rhoda Thys, my grandmother, an experienced world traveler and lover of independence, abundant life, and karaoke, is now bed and wheelchair-ridden. With trust broken between us and hospital care, she is home-based under my mother's care. The limited and disappointing support from the hospital, due to staff shortages and lack of supplies, necessitates reaching out for assistance.

With extreme weight loss, multiple bed sores, and an inability to eat solids, the escalating costs of medical, nutritional, sanitary supplies, and physio care, with minimal assistance from hospitals, leave us no choice but to seek help from those who know and love my grandmother. Our goal is to raise enough funds for her monthly supplies, physio care, an electric scooter wheelchair, and a suitable vehicle for persons with disabilities.

We extend this request to all who can possibly sponsor and support in raising funds for her cause. It's with regret and heavy hearts that we wake up daily to the reality of being deprived of the strength and pillar of our family in what we thought would be the trusted care of medical professionals. Nevertheless, we are grateful to God that she's alive and still with us.