'Very lucky' surgeon at hand

Dunedin woman Pip Falloon knows exactly how valuable it is to have neurosurgery in Dunedin. Photo
Dunedin woman Pip Falloon knows exactly how valuable it is to have neurosurgery in Dunedin. Photo
Pip Falloon believes emergency neurosurgery at Dunedin Hospital saved her life.

"I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for them."

When Mrs Falloon (49) did not turn up for work on Friday, September 18 last year, her colleagues at Unicol knew something was wrong.

About 10am, one was dispatched to her home and found her with her housekeeper, who had discovered her just minutes earlier, in the conservatory, and called an ambulance.

Mrs Falloon said she was "a bit gaga" and had lost control of the left side of her body.

By the time she got to Dunedin Hospital, the then 48-year-old was in a critical condition.

Doctors found an aneurism in the right side of her brain had ruptured and was haemorrhaging.

A Dunedin Hospital neurosurgeon operated a few hours later, placing eight clips on the aneurism to stop the bleeding and drain the excess blood and other fluid.

By that stage, her brain had swollen so much part of her skull had to be removed.

"There was quite a big hole there for a while."

She said yesterday she was "very lucky" there was a neurosurgeon in Dunedin.

"If they had to transfer me to Christchurch, there was no way I would have survived that."

After a month in Dunedin Hospital, she spent another month in rehabilitation learning to walk again.

She had returned to work, but still had limited movement on her left side and suffered from stroke-like symptoms.

She wanted to share her story because people needed to know how vital having the service in Dunedin was, she said.

She was already in a critical condition when it first became apparent something was wrong and having friends, family and colleagues around as support was crucial to her recovery.

Mrs Falloon, whose partner lives and works in the Clutha Valley, said it was bad enough Southland and Otago people had to travel to Dunedin.

"I was just lucky ... I had all that there [in Dunedin]."

Because she had had one congenital aneurism, there was a statistical likelihood she would have more.

"If I didn't have that service down here [in Dunedin] and, knowing that [likelihood], I would feel pretty insecure."

Southern senior clinicians wrote to Southern District Health Board chief executive Brian Rousseau on July 13 expressing their concerns about losing neurosurgery services in Dunedin.

In the letter they gave an example of a woman who "would have definitely died" without acute neurosurgery at Dunedin Hospital.

Mrs Falloon believes she is that woman.

- debbie.porteous@odt.co.nz

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