The Good Morning Britain star has revealed the stark reality of life for the family, as she fears they’ll run out of money to pay for Derek’s round-the-clock care.
Kate, 54, made the admission during an appearance on Good Morning Britain to talk about the second part of her NTA-award-winning documentary, Caring for Derek.
She said, “Because of his extreme health needs, he does have 24 hour care so somebody has to be awake at night and somebody has to be awake during the day and I can't be awake 24 hours so it's fantastic to have that."
Kate went on to tell Philip Schofield and Holly Willoughby that after embarking on a trip to Mexico to see a specialist doctor, the TV star realised this level of care could become unsustainable.
“That came at a really low point when I thought, 'oh god, this is not sustainable,’” Kate admitted.
"The system, I mean I don't believe we can have 24 hour care forever, you know there's a point where money runs out!
"It's a big moment, I was thinking, 'this isn't sustainable' and if there isn't the structure there to help long term, what are we actually going to do? Because we can't give up on him."
Derek is thought to be Britain’s longest-surviving covid-19 patient following his 19-month battle with the deadly virus.
Derek, 54, contracted the virus back at the start of the pandemic and remained in hospital until April—a year on, when he returned home.
Despite being free from the virus now, coronavirus has “wreaked extraordinary damage” on Derek. And the disease has “devastated” him, according to Kate.
"From the top of his head to the tip of his toe. His digestive system, his liver, his kidneys, his heart, his nervous system. We're pretty sure that the inflammation did pass through the brain."
The second part of the documentary which aired on Tuesday, was met with praise from fans.
“Caught up on #CaringForDerek what an inspiration @kategarraway is, as a carer myself I really felt for her, she is one brave, inspirational woman,” one tweeted
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