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No one is so surprised that Margot McAuliffe has Covid-19 as she does.
This is because, bored with hearing other residents of the Ballynoe nursing home talk about bowel movements in the day room, she retired to her own room “years ago”.
Since the pandemic, it has barely left it.
However, a Covid-19 test he took on January 29 turned out to be positive.
Margot only found out she had the virus by accident when, she says, a staff member mentioned it in passing.
Although the company did not comment on how or when he was told, it insists that his family was informed in a timely manner.
Although the 87-year-old Douglas woman survived the outbreak at the Upper Glanmire home where there have been as many as 25 deaths, most, but not all, of which were from Covid, Margot remains very ill.
In fact, a few hours after his interview with the , her condition deteriorated so much that yesterday she was transferred to Mercy Hospital.
His daughter Claire and Ruth and his son Greg, who the I have spoken, supported Margot’s decision to do the interview.
“About the Covid thing?” he asked rhetorically on the phone from his room.
“I stay in my room all the time and it is my personal choice.
“So I never thought for a minute that I would make it. When I got sick, they didn’t tell me I had it, and I was very sick.
But out of nowhere, this person said ‘you have Covid’ and I thought, ‘I couldn’t have done it because I never left the room.’ Someone gave it to me.
On her battle with the virus, she says: “I am not over it, I feel miserable.
“I feel terrible. I am not well and this is due to Covid.
“I have been suffering a lot from it. I stay in bed all the time and I feel really bad.
“My family cannot come to see me and I cannot visit the window.”
Clearly frustrated, she adds: “I’m sick of it and I’m also sick of not feeling well.
“I feel very, very lonely and dejected.”
One of the things she misses the most is being able to go to a local restaurant, Glanmire’s The Barn restaurant, with any of her daughters, Claire and Ruth, or her son Greg.
She has her own mixed opinions on CareChoice, the company Ballynoe runs.
Margot complained at home that a nurse had yelled at her last August.
At the time, he says he had been waiting seven hours for antibiotics to be administered to his right eye, which was in agony.
She says she repeatedly had to ask staff to get a nurse to treat her.
Margot says that when the nurse showed up, she said the nurse yelled at her, threw the medicine at her and told her to put it on.
The company was asked about this, and the apology Margot says she subsequently received responded, “The matter was dealt with appropriately and appropriately.”
Concerns about the way the company handled the recent Covid-19 outbreak have not only been voiced in this document, but have also been raised in the Dáil by TD Mick Barry of the Socialist Party.
Residents of Ballynoe Nursing Home began testing positive for the virus since mid-January in what the company later described as a “significant” outbreak.
Some of the relatives of the deceased are unhappy with the way they say CareChoice has handled the situation.
In addition to a retiree who dies alone and neglected, other family members say they were only told that their loved one died hours after their death.
The company has confirmed that a resident passed away during a family visit to the window. No member of staff was present in the room.
As for people not receiving adequate information about their loved ones in a timely manner, the household has also apologized.
The company insists that the staff did their best at all times.
Margot’s heart goes out to those who work at home, where there was a key management change at the beginning of last December.
“When it comes to CareChoice, all the people I’ve met over the years are gone,” he says.
“The people I liked and took me with have left. I don’t really know anyone here anymore. I appreciate that everyone has to improve.
“I feel heartbroken.
Everyone leaves sooner or later. You cannot get too attached to anyone because you have to progress in life. I saw how hard they work.
Since a recent fall at the house, she now rarely gets out of bed, much less her bedroom.
“I thought it was close to the bed, which it wasn’t, and I fell like a lead balloon,” he said.
“I told them that nothing was wrong, but the next day my knee hurt.
“I was shocked, you know I was really shaking. I no longer feel safe walking. “
Margot moved into the house about nine years ago after suffering from various mobility problems.
Before retiring, the mother of four, whose husband died in 1986, held a variety of positions, including running M&P O’Sullivan’s tobacconists in Princes’ St, Cork.
She made some friends in the early years of being at home and earned the title of Queen of Ballynoe.
Most of her friends at home have long since died, and she increasingly spends most of her time alone in her room.
“It is my decision to stay in the room,” he said.
“When I used to go to the living room, which was years ago, some of the residents would say things like ‘I haven’t opened my guts today.’
“Now, I don’t give a damn if they ever opened their guts, so I decided I’d stay in my room.”
She spends her days listening to radio and television, but admits that she is not a fan of RTÉ.
“I don’t want to sound unpatriotic,” she adds with a smile.
On life in Ballynoe, he says: “I don’t have a heart for this place. I feel very, very lonely.
“I know this is old age and lack of communication but I feel desperate.
“You have to call to go to the bathroom, you have to call to get out of the bathroom, you have to call if I go out to smoke a cigarette and you have to call to [get someone to] bring you back.
“There is no decision you can make for yourself because you are someone who is there.
“I would not recommend it to my worst enemy.”
When asked if she was sure to go public with her story, she said she was happy “if I could make things better,” not just for herself but for others.
“I’d love to,” he said, before apologizing for taking so long and saying that he hoped we would speak again.
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