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Clarence at Home
Clarence's Needs
Since the accident, even the simplest things are exceptionally challenging for Clarence. What a great achievement it was for him to turn a page of a book in 12 seconds, rather than 20 minutes!
Technology plays a great part in helping Clarence enjoy life; such as it is for him. And that costs money.
Basic Care
Clarence needs 24 hour care and a small army of carers tend to his every need. Some of the cost is met by the state, but Clarence still has to make a substantial ongoing contribution.
Home Improvements
Of course it is essential that Clarence can get in out of his house. To facilitate this ramps have been installed, doors widened and the furnishing of the house also has to take into account that Clarence's chair need to move about. Getting to bed is not an easy task as a hoist has to be used to transfer him from his chair, and back again in the morning.
Home Automation
Unless you've been in a position like Clarence's you may not fully appreciate how good it is to be independent: to answer the phone, open a door and so on. By blowing into a special tube, Clarence can control so many items in his house by himself. Of course it's not just a matter of a control box. Every controlled item needs to have an interface and then have it linked to the control box.
A new experience was access to upstairs in his house thanks to the installation of a lift. Not only a new experience, but an improvement in lifestyle, when so many people take access to all rooms in their house for granted.
As good as all this equipment is, it does need looking after and repairing when it goes wrong.
Motor Car
Clarence needs a special vehicle that is both high enough and strong enough to take him in his wheelchair. It needs firm anchorage points so that the chair does not move about in the vehicle, and the special straps to hold the chair firmly. Vehicles such as this are not easy to come by, nor are they as cheap as ordinary cars.
Treatment
Some of Clarence's treatment is on the NHS, but the more groundbreaking treatment is not. He has made trips to Miami and Gloucester for this specialist treatment which needs to be funded.
Travel
When not in his own car, Clarence can travel by special taxi and train; sometimes by air. But it all needs careful planning and often involves extra expense. He has to take quite an amount of luggage with him and always needs a carer on hand. That's extra fares and extra hotel bills. When Clarence was being treated in Gloucester, he had to move house for three weeks, taking a lot of his things with him. Carers then had to be shipped back and forth between Newcastle and Gloucester by train.