A KELTY woman, who suffers from MS, has been left stuck in a nursing home more than 20 miles away from her friends and family for the last three months.

Fife Health and Social Care Partnership have failed to find a care package for Mary Ednie, 56, so she can get back home, leaving her isolated and depressed.

Alex Rowley MSP has brought the case to the Scottish Parliament and said he was “appalled and in disbelief” that this practice is ongoing.

He said: “It is almost as if Ms Ednie is out of sight, out of mind.”

Mary told the Times: “I feel like I have been stuck in a box up here and left.

“I’ve missed family events such as Christmas, New Year and my daughter’s 30th birthday.

“It’s so far away that it’s very difficult for my family to get here, there’s no public transport, it’s just out in the sticks.

“I spend 24 hours a day in my bed which is quickly draining.

“I basically cry myself to sleep at night because it’s so depressing.”

Mary has been living with MS for the last 21 years but last year it became progressive leaving her unable to walk or stand.

She spent most of the year in hospital and unable to send her home the authorities decided to send her to Pitlair House, near Cupar, on December 23. Mary said without her permission the Partnership has attained funding for her to stay until July.

“They say I have critical needs, but I do not deem myself to be critical and Alex Rowley agrees,” Mary explained.

“I have a wheelchair so I can get about.

“It’s really affecting my family’s life as well as my own.

“My son finishes work in Edinburgh and then brings everyone up to see me, so they’re not getting home until after 9 pm.

“My daughter works shifts so might see me every couple of weeks and I have only seen my mum twice since I came here.

“I don’t see my friends and neighbours because it’s so difficult for them to get to.

“The majority of the people in the home have dementia so I can not socialise.

“It was only recently that they were able to provide me with the internet.

“I’ve got to the stage where I can not keep going on like this. It’s quite a place they have put me in.”

It was revealed last week that there has been a sharp rise in bed-blocking in Fife, with the number of patients well enough but unable to leave doubling over the last 12 months.

Over a third of the delays - 36 per cent - were because patients were waiting for completion of a care package.

Mary added: “It’s coming up for a few months now and I’m still here, which I find completely shocking. I don’t think they are looking hard enough.

“I know there is a shortage of carers in Fife but the local authority needs to tackle this issue.

“My MS has been diagnosed as my primary progressive now and unfortunately it’s going to get worse, but I hoped that I could still live the way I wanted to. I’m still volunteering in the community and I want to be with people my own age.

“It’s my legs that are not working, it’s not my brain.”

Alex Rowley said: “The nursing home is not the best way to support this 56-year-old woman who needs to be in her home. I’ve been communicating with Fife Health and Social Care management, I’m afraid they don’t seem to get the urgency of this case.

“It must be costing a lot of money that would be far better spent supporting Ms Ednie and other people in community care.

“There is something seriously wrong with the provision of social care in Fife when this case and many others I am raising with NHS Fife and Fife Council are not being addressed. This should not be allowed to continue.”

Julie Paterson, Divisional General Manager (Fife-wide) said: “Fife Health and Social Care Partnership is wholly committed to finding the appropriate solution. I can confirm that the social work service has been actively working in partnership with Ms Ednie to provide a service that is acceptable to Ms Ednie and meets the outcomes that Ms Ednie wishes to achieve. We continue to work in partnership and hope that an agreed arrangement will be in place at the earliest opportunity.”