Tanner and Eloise
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.
Tanner is nearly 20. He has scoliosis and disabilities that impact his vision and his ability to walk and talk. He also lives with chronic pain.
His mum, Eloise, told the Royal Commission that trying to get adequate health care for Tanner over the course of his life has been a constant battle. ‘Parents have to fight for help and they are often left to deal with the issues on their own,’ she said.
Tanner was in pain for extended periods. ‘Every two hours his colon would trigger a spasm, which is a strong pain, something that he could not deal with. He would cry for … two hours, day and night, for three years.’
‘Our experience is that the health system does not deal with chronic pain issues very well … The method is to medicate and once there is no answers the system will continue to trial various drugs.’
The only comfort Eloise could give Tanner was to hold him ‘like a baby and put a heat pack onto his belly’.
‘Once every specialist did their tick list with my son they then put us in a too hard basket and left us alone.’
Eloise spent years researching Tanner’s condition. She consulted a naturopath and investigated Chinese medicine. She shared her findings about potential natural remedies with the complex care team at the hospital, but they had little interest.
‘All they really do is take notes [which] makes families feel they [are] just covering themselves.’
Eloise would like to see the establishment of specialist clinics focused on more complex care areas ─ along with ‘a new way of thinking … not just pushing drugs’.
‘I see a future when doctors are not burnt out and confused as to what to do … when disability will be treated by holistic care … We have to listen to the families and people with disability.’
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.