Following the big freeze and the even bigger snowfall, Pádraig couldn’t wait to go out today. It was cold, but the skies were blew and apart from the odd patches, the footpaths were clear of snow. Not being able to go out for days, almost weeks, is not good for anyone. So he had a great time getting the fresh air and meet friends on the street. There’s nothing like a friendly neighbourhood where people stop and talk to you.

We had to go to the pharmacy to pick up some stuff. The pharmacist also looked at Pádraig’s file and asked whether he needed anything from his prescriptions, a long list of many different potions from those preventing seizures to those helping with the bowel and many more.

Then the pharmacist realised that we hadn’t collected any of those drugs for Pádraig in a long time, like more than a year. And that we hadn’t even collected the many different food supplements he had taken, or the high calorie drinks in months – because he just doesn’t need them anymore. The only prescription ‘drug’ he is still taken is a calcium chewy tablet. And even of that he’s only taking half – because he is now drinking enough ‘super’-milk to get the calcium he needs.

There are many ways to describe, even measure, Pádraig’s progress over the past months and years. This is one that is one file. Very clinical. Independent. Measurable. Unambiguous.

Brilliant.