T he final report on the infected blood scandal details the litany of government and healthcare failures which led to thousands of people being infected with HIV and Hepatitis C. It contains harsh words for doctors, ministers and civil servants , but it also aims to shine a light on the heartbreaking stories of pain and loss from victims and their families. Here are some of their reactions to the report in Westminster on Monday.
‘It’s restored my faith in humanity’ Jacquie Stephens, 70, Bristol Stephens spent most of her life feeling like a bad mother after being left mysteriously exhausted following childbirth in 1981. Doctors diagnosed her with postnatal depression and admitted her to a psychiatric unit, but that assessment never felt quite right. View image in fullscreen She was later diagnosed with Hepatitis C, which started to provide answers, but things only fell into place on Monday.
“The beauty of this now is that – my kids suffered badly because of me; I wouldn’t tell them what had happened to me and I think they just thought I was a bad mother – now they’re able to see what it was really. I just feel so light about that, because I felt so incredibly guilty all my life. “This day has been the best day ever.
I just wish I was a bit younger, because 70 is too late for me. But it’s not too late for my kids. I feel completely vindicated, that I can rebuild my life.
It’s restored my faith in humanity. [The report’s author] Sir Brian [Langstaff] is .
