Newmarket resident Brandon Boyce said he has had to battle to get all the care he needs.
Boyce said he has had to use a wheelchair to get around after a bad case of COVID-19. Boyce is still seeking diagnosis of his exact condition, but he said the illness ultimately left him weaker and unable to walk.
Now, Boyce said he is unable to work. Although he is getting some assisted living benefits, he said getting government support for all the equipment he needs has been a struggle and caused him to turn to GoFundMe, hoping to raise about $15,000 to cover medical equipment expenses.
“They can’t do everything all at once,” he said of government support. "I’m a very prideful man, so (this is) very shameful (to me).”
Boyce, 39, has worked in a factory for much of his adult life. He said he moved to Newmarket from Barrie in 2019 due to a family passing and in pursuit of more work, but the pandemic ended up complicating matters.
He said a back injury kept him out of work for a while. That was followed by him getting a bad case of COVID-19, that left him "getting weaker and weaker.”
After the battle with the illness, Boyce said he was rendered unable to walk and stand properly, without wheelchair assistance.
“It’s like a sledgehammer to your body,” Boyce said of his condition. “And those things hurt.”
Getting the care he needed has been challenging, Boyce said. Although he cannot walk and said he is facing obesity, the exact nature of his weakness remains a health mystery. He said he has got bounced between referrals to different specialists but has been left waiting months for appointments due to system backlogs.
But another challenge has come from getting disability support. He said while the provincial government will cover some of it, there is a limit to how much they can offer for equipment.
“The problem is it would probably take years to get the equipment I need at this point. I’m frustrated trying to get my headrest and backrest replaced because they weren’t to what I feel my needs are,” he said. “It’s like going through insurance. I call, I ask, and it’s like, ‘Well, we don’t cover this, we don’t cover that.’”
The provincial government offers an assisted devices program (ADP) where individuals can apply for funding to assist with devices like wheelchairs and other supplies at 75 per cent. However, the program does not cover an array of mobility aids, including positioning devices not required for use with a wheelchair, ramps, lifts or recliner chairs. Grab bars, bath and shower aids and more are also not on the table.
Boyce is looking to get a range of equipment, including a medical trapeze bar that could help him change positions in his bed, a hospital air mattress, a geri chair meant to help those with limited mobility and a backup wheelchair.
Meanwhile, he said he hopes to get into a disability suite in assisted housing that will help him fulfill his needs and is on the waitlist for that.
Despite the struggle to get support, Boyce said he understands why there are constraints.
“I understand you can’t really increase disability (coverage) to a certain per cent ... At this point in time, the disability system is adequate, it’s not the best. It’s adequate for my needs,” Boyce said, but added, ”I know other people (for whom) it’s not (adequate) because their medical experiences are more or their needs are more.”
Boyce said his situation should improve if he can get an accessible suite. But he said at this point, he has likely maximized the support that he can get from the government and is stuck waiting to get devices he said would improve his quality of life. Finding out exactly the root causes of his health issues could also take years, he said.
“Patience is a virtue. I’m used to waiting and being patient. It’s not a perfect world, but it’s the only one we live in,” he said. “I need help. Otherwise, I wouldn’t be asking and the fact that I’m struggling right now is more frustrating than anything.”
