Lillie
Content Warning: These stories are about violence, abuse, neglect and exploitation and may include references to suicide or self-harming behaviours. They may contain graphic descriptions and strong language and may be distressing. Some narratives may be about First Nations people who have passed away. If you need support, please see Contact & support.
‘I’ve still got more to contribute. And people with disabilities also can do the same, [but] we just shut them out and put them in a corner and forget all about them, but they’re human beings.’
Lillie is in her 50s and lives with type 2 diabetes and a physical injury from surgery.
‘Something happened, I needed an operation. I was told that it was something they do all the time. It turned out the doctor wasn’t qualified, he butchered me,’ Lillie told the Royal Commission. ‘That one day destroyed my life. I am not going to get emotional, it’s quite sad. I have been kicked from pillar to post since then.’
Lillie said that before the surgery, she had a successful career as an engineer.
‘I worked really hard and I loved my job. I was good at it.’
After the surgery, Lillie said, she lost her job and is now ‘mostly incapacitated’ and needs medication for pain.
Lillie is supported by a charity, but said its staff have abused her. For example, when her washing machine broke, she was given a replacement that was faulty.
‘I just didn’t use it, and that appliance could cause a fire and could kill somebody because it was arcing, and I was told by this woman … to cop it and shut up.’
Lillie said some carers from other service providers stole ‘rings, gold chains, computers, CDs, stuff that they could either use themselves or sell on’.
Lillie said she’s had little help to access the NDIS.
‘Nothing happened. I am now receiving $50 help a week from a friend of mine to get by, because I normally run out of food on the Monday before the Wednesday when my pension comes due.’
Disclaimer: This is the story of a person who shared their personal experience with the Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability through a submission or private session. The names in this story are pseudonyms. The person who shared this experience was not a witness and their account is not evidence. They did not take an oath or affirmation before providing the story. Nothing in this story constitutes a finding of the Royal Commission. Any views expressed are those of the person who shared their experience, not of the Royal Commission.