Jeanne Jackson from Clondalkin in Dublin is one of those treasures you get to meet in life. Full of craic, and with loads of stories to tell. It begins with her name – pronounced Jean – but spelt the French way. “I’ve no idea what a French priest was doing in Dublin 70 years ago but he decided this was the way to spell my name,” she laughs.

Jeanne has had knee pain for six years, attending the hospital in Dublin since 2017. “I only actually got put on the waiting list last December though,” says Jeanne. “They didn’t say how long I would have to wait. I couldn’t put up with it anymore. “My knee had been really bad for the past two years and began to affect my hip so that’s a lot worse now too. I turned 70 in May this year and I felt my age because I was in so much pain. I have five grandchildren. The youngest is just one year old and you want to be able to play with them and I couldn’t do that. I’ve had a miserable year.

“The best thing I did was pick on the phone to Healthcare Abroad. I called Greg on the 1st day of August. He explained everything so well and was so positive and I took the decision that I was going to go to Spain. “I knew it was the right thing to do. I told my husband when he came home from work that day and he was thrilled for me. Chris called me the next day to process things and Healthcare Abroad looked after everything after that. “I also dealt with the wonderful Paul. He was amazing. He looked after all the Credit Union stuff so I could get a loan for the surgery. He was brilliant. “The trip to Denia in Spain was amazing. The drivers were incredible – Sean, Kevin, Suzanne and Scott. Scott is a wonderful young man. They don’t make them like that anymore.

“My surgeon Dr Jordy van Rijn was superb. The hospital staff were the same – and the physiotherapists were incredible. “Even when I left Dublin to go to Spain, Andrew met us at the airport with wheelchair assistance. He was superb. It was like someone had looked after you from Dublin to Spain and back again. “I looked at all the testimonials on Facebook and I’ll be telling everyone I meet who needs help to call Healthcare Abroad. And if anyone wants to contact me for more information, I would be happy to talk to them, to tell them that it’s all true – that it’s amazing.”

Jeanne Jackson travelled to Spain with Healthcare Abroad under the EU Cross Border Directive scheme. The HSE will reimburse all her medical costs around 16 weeks after she flies back to Ireland. Jeanne’s medical costs were financed by Tower Credit Union in Clondalkin.