A north woman who spent a year in hospital has called for an overhaul of the care system as she finally returned home.
Debbie Michie said that her ordeal should make health bosses look closely at the way home carers were organised, including their pay and shift patterns.
The 61-year-old had her leg amputated at Raigmore Hospital in Inverness in September last year.
But, despite recovering from the surgery, she had to stay in hospital in Grantown because there were not enough carers to look after her.
Last month, Mrs Michie was told that a care package was secure and she could leave the town’s Ian Charles Hospital but had her hopes dashed at the last minute when she contracted pneumonia.
Finally this week, she returned home to Nethy Bridge – just one day short of spending a full year in hospital.
Her case, which was discussed at the Scottish Parliament, has highlighted the problems of delayed discharge across the Highlands and beyond.
Speaking from her home last night, Mrs Michie said she and husband Iain, 63, are now re-adjusting to life together again.
Mrs Michie said: “When I went into hospital, we had been in this house eight weeks. Iain has had the place to himself for a year so he has it working the way he wants.
“Now I’m back so I’m telling him that’s not the way I do things.
“Even our dog Sara is looking at me thinking I shouldn’t be here.”
Mrs Michie added: “I was beginning to think I wouldn’t get out.
“But there are so many people in the same position as I was. They are not just in the Ian Charles Hospital. It’s Raigmore and all over Scotland.
“I am so lucky to have carers in place. They are brilliant but people need to know it’s not just a case of putting someone to bed or making a cup of tea.
“It’s a skilled job and I think that we need to make it s worthwhile for people.
“Carers need decent wages and decent shift patterns.”
She said that carers were not given time to travel from one client to the next.
“The system needs overhauled. People need to sit down and work it out properly,” she said.
Mr Michie added: “A lot of people are in the same boat and we don’t want them to go through what we did.”
Last month, the Press and Journal reported that the number of patients needlessly languishing in Highland hospitals has almost trebled in the past two-and-a-half years.
Official figures show the number of patients prevented from leaving wards soared from 29 in January 2012 to 74 in July this year. The statistics revealed 32 people have been stuck in hospital for more than four weeks and 23 for more than six weeks.