Turkish hospital ‘holding British pub landlord hostage’ until his £41,000 bill is paid after he fell into a coma while on holiday but wasn’t insured
A Turkish hospital was today accused of holding a British grandfather hostage until he paid his £41,000 medical bill after he fell into a coma after falling ill while on holiday.
Retired pub owner Malcolm Stocker, 68, has been in intensive care for almost a month after being diagnosed with pneumonia during a two-week stay with his girlfriend Jane in Icmeler.
His distraught family claims staff told them they had to pay half the amount to Ahu Hospital in Marmaris immediately before he could leave.
Mr Stocker’s daughter Emma-Jane, 33, said: ‘It’s just heartbreaking to see my dad in hospital and so helpless.’
She added that her father, who had several pre-existing conditions, did not get health insurance for the trip but decided to go anyway because he knew he would not be covered in case of an emergency.
Mrs Stocker continued: ‘He doesn’t really know where he is and thinks he’s on a cruise ship. He has been out of the induced coma for a while, but is so heavily sedated.
‘We just want to take him home but until we pay the hospital they are refusing to give his passport back and demanding we pay £20,000.
Emma-Jane Stocker, 37, from Bournemouth, and her father Malcolm Stocker, 68, from Exmouth
Malcolm Stocker, pictured before he fell ill, has been in intensive care for almost a month
Emma-Jane Stocker said her father, who had pre-existing conditions, was unable to get insurance
‘We really feel like we are being intimidated. My brother Lee is in the hospital and they told him that we weren’t grateful enough and that they saved his life.
Retired pub owner Malcolm Stocker, 68, was put into a coma after falling ill while on holiday
“We appreciate everything they’ve done, but now they’re just demanding that we pay the medical bill.”
The holiday nightmare began when father-of-three Mr Stocker became dehydrated during a two-week stay with Jane.
After initially experiencing stomach upset, his sodium and potassium levels were found to be dangerously low and he was admitted to hospital.
A chest x-ray showed he had pneumonia, after which he was placed in a medical coma and intubated.
Despite being brought out of the coma two weeks ago, he is still heavily sedated.
Mrs Stocker, who works as a medical secretary, flew to her father with her older sister Kerry-Ann, 37.
She said few staff at the hospital spoke English and they had not been given access to any of its doctors.
Mrs Stocker added: ‘We were told we could see my father for 15 minutes every day, but after five minutes they told us to leave.
‘My father worked as a waiter on the QE2 cruise ship. He’s (so) out of it that he thinks he’s back on the ship. It’s horrible to see him lying there in such disarray.
Emma-Jane Stocker, who works as a medical secretary, flew to see her father in hospital
Ahu Hospital in Marmaris, Turkey, where Mr Stocker has been in an intensive care unit
Emma-Jane Stocker says it’s ‘heartbreaking to see my father in hospital and so helpless’
“We have heard from others who have ended up in Turkish hospitals that patients can be deliberately sedated to face more charges.”
Mrs. Stocker confirmed that her father decided to go on the trip even though he was denied health insurance.
“The good and bad of that can be discussed at a later date when he is home safely,” she said.
The hospital said Mr Stocker has so far paid a bill of £41,000 for almost a month’s stay.
Mrs Stocker, a mother-of-one, contacted the British Embassy in Turkey to see if they could help but was told to consider starting a GoFundMe page to raise money for a medical evacuation flight back to Britain.
She said: ‘We don’t have the kind of money the hospital is asking for. They have my father’s passport and will not release it to the family. We have the feeling that he is being held hostage and is not allowed to leave until the bill is paid.
‘My brother Lee is in hospital and he was first told we had to pay £20,000, and then at another meeting he was told we didn’t appreciate what they had done enough.
Emma-Jane Stocker said she went to see her father, but few staff at the hospital spoke English
‘Of course we’re very grateful, but we can’t pay £20,000 now because we don’t have that kind of money.’
Mrs Stocker and her sister have launched a fundraising page with a target of £29,000.
Nearly £5,000 has been raised so far and they hope to raise enough for the evacuation flight, which could cost up to £20,000.
Mrs Stocker said: ‘We just want to bring our dad home. Once we raise enough money, we can pay for the hospital and arrange a flight home.
‘This situation is deteriorating, with my father still too ill to leave, let alone travel. The hospital won’t allow him to leave without payment. We don’t know where to go.’
MailOnline has contacted Ahu Hospital for comment.
To donate to the family’s appeal, click here for the GoFundMe page