He wanted to go home. It wasn’t going to be easy, but that’s what he wanted most of all. To go back to where it had all begun. Back to his ancestral home. He was at risk of dying on the way but it was important that he at least try. It wouldn’t be easy for his family. There was much less formal support available in the small town he was born in. He would have to rely on his family members to look after him.

The practicalities needed to be sorted out. Who could provide equipment and home support? These things can be hard enough to arrange urgently in metropolitan areas let alone in rural New Zealand. The postcode lottery of our health system continues to provide a stark reality check. Healthcare provision levels depend on where you live. If you live in the city, you will likely be well-supported. Outside of our big cities, the local support networks are much more limited. The country mouse and the city mouse have very different quality of living, and also quality of dying.

An exceptional case called for a lot of networking to make the trip home as smooth as possible. What medications would be needed? Where would he get his medications from? What was going to happen overnight? What would happen when he died? Who would fill out the required certificates? We didn’t have all the answers and we needed to make our plans up as we went along.

Would he make it?