Minister urged to help thalidomide victim

The Health Secretary has been asked to intervene to help a London woman denied 24-hour home care by the NHS.

Campaigners from the Thalidomide Trust have urged Andy Burnham to help 47-year-old Veronica Pakenham.

Ms Pakenham, who was born with no limbs as a result of exposure to the drug thalidomide in the womb, was taken to hospital after a severe stroke.

She has been ready to be discharged for six months, but cannot leave Hillingdon Hospital in Uxbridge as Greenwich Teaching Primary Care Trust will not provide her with round-the-clock care, according to campaigners.

Guy Tweedy of the Thalidomide Trust said: "This is a lady with no legs, no arms, who is incontinent, and Greenwich PCT haven't got the funding to look after her properly. They are not suggesting anything, they are saying, 'We can't look after you, just chuck her on the street'." Figures show that Greenwich Teaching PCT had a surplus of £1.5million for the last financial year.

Campaigners wrote to Mr Burnham but have not yet had a reply. This week they will meet health minister Mike O'Brien as part of wider attempts to get compensation over thalidomide.

More than 450 British babies exposed to the drug in the womb in the late Fifties and early Sixties were left with stunted limbs and other disabilities.

The victims agreed a compensation settlement with the firm that distributed the drug in the UK, but campaigners want the Government to contribute more funds to help the sufferers.

A Department of Health spokesman said: "Those affected by thalidomide continue to get compensated through a private settlement with Diageo PLC [who] will pay a total of £150million by 2037."