Lucy's Story

Lucy Pugh lives with her Mum and Stepdad in Gloucester. She loves to craft and spends a lot of her time with her wonderful nephews and partner. Lucy is a Senior Care Assistant, working with the elderly in the community.

Lucy had her urostomy formed in 2023, as a result of full urinary retention. Whilst she was new to having a stoma, Lucy had 6 years’ experience of using a dispensing and home delivery service as she had been ordering her catheters, night bags and leg bags in this way. However, this experience was not positive: on many occasions she was not informed when her items were out of stock, there was a great lack of communication and she was not offered guidance when any of her prescribed items were out of stock’.

Medilink® – The Early Days

When Lucy’s stoma care Nurse showed her the Salts Confidence BE® Urostomy system, she knew instantly she wanted to try it. Seeing the colour choice, the soft feel of the material and the viewing window all felt so important to Lucy and she knew it would help in her recovery and acceptance of her stoma. Lucy's job is very active so not being able to hear her bag was extremely important to her. Not all urostomy bags have a viewing window and with her stoma often retracting this was extremely useful for Lucy. The bag itself felt so comfortable on her body, and Lucy said “not having a tap constantly dig into your leg is huge, with the velcro keeping it firmly out of the way is also a huge benefit”. Lucy also uses the Confidence BE Night Bag and finds the tubing so flexible it never affects her sleep.

Visiting Salts Healthcare for an event just 12 weeks post-surgery was Lucy’s first experience of meeting anyone else with a stoma. Before this, she was feeling extremely alone and as if she was the only one living with a urostomy at such a young age. Lucy said “it felt so comfortable being in a room full of people in the same situation. Simple things such as going into the toilets and seeing a basket full of supplies – just instantly made me feel at home”.

Lucy spent time chatting with one of the Marketing Team at the event, explaining the issues she was having with her deliveries, and it was explained just how simple and reliable her delivery service should be. It was only at this point that Lucy learnt that there were other options for delivery companies, and she was very grateful to be put in touch with her local Medilink® branch. A member of the Broadway team called Lucy the following Monday.

My First Impressions

Lucy said “I was extremely vulnerable when first speaking to the Broadway Medilink® team; I felt like a fish out of water! As someone who doesn’t enjoy change, and had very recently undergone life changing surgery, it took a lot for me to admit to myself that I wasn’t receiving the level of service I needed”. Lucy was worried that any change would make things go wrong, and it all felt huge to her – but she couldn’t have been further from the truth!

Following her very first conversation with Amanda, at Medilink® Broadway, Lucy said “It felt like they were wrapping me up in a hug”. She instantly felt cared for and as if the team had her best interests at heart.

Medilink®: Trust and Communication

Lucy says the trust she now has in Medilink® is priceless. Amanda recently took the time to resolve an issue with Lucy’s GP, and always spends time making sure her deliveries are received on time. Lucy no longer has to juggle work, phone calls and unnecessary chasing – as with her previous service.

She finds the process of ordering so easy, simply sending her requirement email once a month and Amanda confirms receipt straight away. Ordering her supplies is now just a simple part of her life, and she’s often placed her order sitting in bed at the end of a busy day, it’s so easy.

It’s the Small Touches

Lucy loves the Medilink® wash bags; using the smaller bag in her handbag and she says the larger size works as a great “car kit”. Lucy says “my experience of both Salts Healthcare and Medilink® has been nothing short of amazing! The people across the business feel the same, you all have the same passion for the patient and treating us as individuals”. She is so happy with the service Amanda and the Broadway Medilink® team provide; “They have got my back and want me to be happy and comfortable, which has made such a huge difference to my journey”.