Oops! A 62-year-old grandmother has been left penniless after she spent her life’s savings thinking she was dying, only to later receive the news that she was misdiagnosed.
In Novermber 2016, Jackie Dibb, was told by doctors that she had a maximum of five years to live because she was suffering from an incurable dementia. The doctors told her to enjoy the rest of her life and she took their advice and went on a spending spree.
Jackie said goodbye to her 12-year-old granddaughter after telling her, “I’ll still be here, but I’ll be like one of those zombies you see in films”. She and her husband Rob Dibb, 61, then emptied their pensions of £10,000. They spent £4,000 on a wet room for their home, £1,500 on a holiday and £700 for a double-door American fridge.
But a year later, doctors at Hull Royal Infirmary reviewed her case and a scan showed she never had dementia at all. She was only suffering from severe anxiety.
Rob, of Hull, East Yorkshire, said: “We feel embarrassed to be honest, we said goodbye to family everything – we feel crushed. At the moment we are treading water with money – we’re up to our noses anyway.
‘We emptied our pensions and savings, we flew to Turkey on a big family holiday and bought things we didn’t need.”
Jackie wanted a big American-style fridge – so I bought her that and we spent shed loads of money, adapting the home, going on trips – you name it. People advised me to just give her whatever she wanted while she could still enjoy it – but she never even had dementia.”
Mr Dibb made a complaint to the NHS trust Hull and East Yorkshire Hospitals following the misdiagnosis and received a letter apologising for the added stress caused.”
Rob, who retired early to become a full-time carer for wife Jackie, has vowed not to sue the NHS “because they’ve been too good to us over the years”.
He added: ‘If I sue the NHS then that might be another incubator not on a ward – and a kid who wouldn’t have a fighting chance.’”
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