Seventeen weeks.

That’s how long Geri (Geraldine) Stantiall, 45, has been languishing in hospital after having her leg amputated.

She could have been discharged more than a month ago and would love to stop taking up a hospital bed, but the type 2 diabetic – blind in one eye and on dialysis – has nowhere to go.

Stantiall can no longer safely access the house her family rents, which is up for sale, and has found it impossible to find an accessible home in Tauranga.

Health NZ’s Pauline McGrath says Stantiall was admitted to hospital on November 21.

“Under normal circumstances, Geraldine should have been available for discharge from Tauranga Hospital in early February, however, due to her current accommodation situation that has not proved possible.

“We continue to do all we can to support her in finding appropriate accommodation.”

The Ministry for Social Development (MSD) acknowledges the family’s “difficult and stressful” situation but says the supply of public housing is tight nationwide – particularly for accessible homes.

The latest MSD data shows 826 applicants waiting for public housing in Tauranga, where the median market rent in January was $700 according to Trade Me.

In recent months Bay of Plenty, led by Tauranga prices, has jostled with Auckland for the title of most expensive region for renters.

Stantiall holds no animosity towards her landlord or Tauranga Hospital but says the Government should be accountable as there are not enough state houses for people with disabilities.

Geri (Geraldine) Stantiall says she is still in hospital because she can't find a suitable home to rent. Photo / Alex Cairns

“They are doing nothing for people like me.

“We want a home and I want to speak up about it.

“I feel guilty being in here taking up this bed when someone else needs it.”

‘I cry when I’m alone’

When the Bay of Plenty Times visited Stantiall in the Kaupapa Ward she ushered out a fellow patient in a wheelchair, “I’ll come and see you later babes and we’ll talk”.

Her 13-year-old daughter Cheyenne lay across the bed scrolling on her phone. Stantiall’s best friend and caregiver Rebecca Hoare nodded as Stantiall spoke about the stress she experiences.

“I’m a mother and I’m a wife and being in here, away from my family, well I struggle with that. The saddest part of my day is when they all leave.

“I cry when I’m alone and sometimes I ring my husband and ask him to come back.”

Geri Stantiall is finding it impossible to get a wheelchair-friendly rental in Tauranga. Photo / Alex Cairns

Stantiall was “really grateful” to have roof over her head, a shower and the necessities, but a hospital ward was not a home.

She was aware of and had spoken to others in the same situation. “But that is their story.” .

‘I’d already prepared my funeral’

Stepping on a phone charger last year led to the loss of her right leg. It made a small hole in her heel which ulcered and – despite being put in a cast that was changed regularly – failed to heal.

“One of the vascular surgeons said ‘we’ve done all that we can do for your leg but it’s up to you and it might be time’, so I knew what he meant straight away.”

Stantiall hoped it could be amputated from below the knee, but because of her diabetes and complications fears, surgeons removed her leg from above her knee on December 20 at Waikato Hospital.

“I thought I wasn’t going to make it because I’m not good under the knife. I’d already prepared my funeral.”

Four days later, she realised, “I am here for a reason”.

“I just decided then I’m gonna live, I’m gonna get up and I’m gonna make the most of this.”

She was transferred to Tauranga Hospital to start rehabilitation and physio. She is determined to get a prosthetic leg despite being told that may not be possible.

‘It hurts that I can’t get a home’

Stantiall is “exhausted” by applying for countless rentals.

“I just applied for another one this morning. It’s become a habit, I wake up and it’s Trade Me. I’m so tired I’m falling asleep when I get my dialysis at the renal unit.”

At one viewing, her wheelchair wouldn’t fit through the door. At another, she was told 96 applicants had applied.

Geri Stantiall and her daughter Cheyenne. Photo / Alex Cairns

Their bid for a state home had also been fruitless. Stantiall said their priority rating was 14 and the highest was 20.

She believed her husband’s job and already having a rental (albeit inaccessible for her) worked against them.

“I’d get more help if I was a single mother but I’m not going to do that. I’m not going to leave my husband.”

Cheyenne said it was “annoying” her mother was in hospital. She felt sad but “I’m used to it”.

And she shouldn’t be, Stantiall said.

“It hurts that I can’t get a home … it scares me that I’m homeless and I shouldn’t be in this situation.”

Health NZ ‘not a social housing provider’

McGrath is the group director of operations at Te Whatu Ora’s Hauora a Toi Bay of Plenty, which oversees Tauranga Hospital.

She said the welfare of patients was its primary focus and it did “everything we can” to help with accommodation issues, including advocating for patients and ensuring they have information about applying for emergency housing.

Tauranga Hospital. Photo / George Novak

“As Health New Zealand Te Whatu Ora is not a social housing provider our role is to support patients and link them with the Government, community and local services that can help them.”

‘Very difficult and stressful time’

MSD Bay of Plenty regional commissioner Jacob Davies said the ministry had been discussing the situation with Stantiall and her agent since early February.

He said the ministry “will continue to work with the family to ensure we understand their needs, and they understand the support options they may be eligible for. We know this is a very difficult and stressful time for Geraldine and her family.”

Davies said finding affordable and accessible homes could be “challenging”, and the public supply was very tight, but it could help.

“For example, we have organised for a housing broker to contact the family and offer personalised support to their search for a suitable private rental.

Finding affordable and accessible rentals can be difficult. Photo / 123 rf

“If someone needs housing assistance, the first thing we do is investigate all their options to avoid homelessness.”

That could include private rentals, staying with family or friends, help to pay bond and rent in advance, financial assistance with moving costs, or offering a landlord tenancy costs cover.

Shortage of accessible housing

Minister for Disabilities Penny Simmonds said disabled people experienced “significant and specific difficulties” with housing.

There was a shortage of accessible homes across the country.

Simmonds said the lead agency for work to improve housing accessibility was the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

Minister for Disabilities Penny Simmonds. Photo / Mark Mitchell

“These are longstanding issues, and there is still much work to do.”

She said HUD delivered $150 million through the Affordable Housing Fund’s Affordable Rental Pathway towards building new homes for people who struggle to afford a market rental but cannot access public housing.

Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka said the housing shortage was a “pre-existing problem” and demand for accessible homes was rising in Tauranga and throughout New Zealand.

“While we will ensure Kāinga Ora is increasing the supply of social housing … we must also be certain social housing is prioritised for those most in need.”

In Tauranga, Kāinga Ora would deliver around 170 additional newly-built social homes across 2023/24 and 2024/25.

Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka. Photo / Michael Cunningham

Nationally, it aimed for at least 15 per cent of new builds to meet Full Universal Design accessibility standards. It also modifies thousands of its existing homes to be more accessible..

Potaka said part of MSD’s application process to determine eligiblity for public housing was considering whether clients had disabilities and needed a house with modifications.

”This ensures that clients are only matched with houses that are suitable to them.”

By the numbers

• Of Kāinga Ora’s 446 social housing homes in Tauranga, 72 had modifications to improve livability, such as ramps, or met full universal design standards.
• Most of Tauranga’s 1691 public homes are part of Accessible Properties’ portfolio.
• An Accessible Properties tenant survey found 62 per cent of tenants said a member of their household had a disability.
• Accessible Properties has 39 new builds planned for Tauranga and Te Puke that would be suitable for a Lifemark 4-star rating.
• 826 applicants are on the public housing register in Tauranga.

Carmen Hall is a news director for the Bay of Plenty Times and Rotorua Daily Post, covering business and general news. She has been a Voyager Media Awards winner and a journalist for 25 years.