Manchester woman stuck in Turkey hospital after horrific incident on holiday

‘It’s one of those hard, hard situations that we’re trying to go through’

The family of a great grandmother are pleading for help to get her back home to Manchester after she suffered a horrific fall on holiday.

Catherine Harrison, 86, was in Turkey with her loved ones when she fell in the shower and fractured her back. They were just two days into the trip in Antalya.

It left Catherine in extreme pain for days before her family took her to a private hospital.

Great granddaughter Amaya Harrison said: “She fell and landed on her back. My mum and her partner were there at the time and they brought her back into her bedroom and tried to put cold ice packs and cold sprays.

“She was bed bound for three days so we had to send her to a hospital that was recommended by the hotel we were staying at. She’s not really been able to talk because she’s been crying in pain. But she’s been telling us not to worry or stress, but I know she’s the one that is stressing.”

Amaya said there were problems with Catherine’s care at the first ward, but she’s been moved. “They are trying to feed her, going out and finding her food so hopefully it’ll be okay,” the 21-year-old said.

Amaya, her siblings and her mum’s partner have since returned to Manchester, while mum Joanne has stayed with Catherine who is still in hospital. Travel insurance was taken out for Catherine, but not for Joanne.

The family has contacted insurance companies, but hasn’t had much ‘help or advice’, she added. Now the family, from Moss Side, is trying to raise £56,000 to bring Catherine home.

“They’re saying it’s going to cost us £56,000 to get her home because she can’t fly a normal commercial flight,” Amaya added.

“She has to be on a stretcher because she has to lay flat. She also needs a doctor because my Nana has loads of other healthcare conditions and it’s a high risk for her to come home.

“My mum is beating herself up because she can’t be at home and she can’t get Nana home. It’s one of those hard, hard situations that we’re trying to go through.

“We have quite a big family and my Nana is at the centre of it. She was the youngest of five children and she’s the only one left.

“A lot of us are panicking here in Manchester, trying to scrape pennies together to get her home. It has been hard, especially to my younger siblings, they don’t really understand the severity of the situation as of yet. We’re really just trying to get it together.”

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