A FORMER Limerick pet store employee who contracted a debilitating brain infection caring for sick pets in November 2008 is currently writing a book about her experience and plans to undertake further intensive rehab later this year.
Patricia Ingle (24), a native of Ballinacurra Weston, became seriously ill in September 2008 after she contracted chlamydia psittacosis, an airborne infection which can be transferred from birds to humans, while working in Petmania on the Ennis Road.
She was left paralysed, confined to a wheelchair, brain-damaged and breathes with the assistance of a ventilator, however she has made great progress in the last five years and says she is looking forward to the future.
Speaking outside the High Court in Dublin last Tuesday, Patricia said: “Almost five years after my illness, I have only my own determination, my amazing family and my lawyers to thank for my survival, rehabilitation and progress.
“It is the same people who have always believed in me and my ability to progress. I would never have reached the heights I have only for them.”
She also thanked her parents Pat and Annette, sisters Melissa and Kiera, advocate Grace Moore and solicitor Susie Elliott “for always ensuring no stone was ever unturned in getting the very best for me, every step of the way.”
Patricia added: “I’m now looking forward to the next two-year chapter and further progress.”
Patricia and her solicitor returned to the High Court this week in relation to her ongoing legal claim as against the Health Service Executive (HSE).
A settlement was recently reached between Patricia’s lawyers and the HSE to fund her care and therapeutic and rehabilitation requirements for a further two years.
Initiated in 2010, the case concerned an employer’s liability and medical negligence action centred on Petmania’s failure to protect her from known risks.
Patricia initially spent 1,069 days in University Hospital Limerick but now lives at home in Morroe and has learned to walk again with supports, and can speak and breathe without her respirator for up to five hours a day.
She has also completed a university course, manages her own nursing regime and is making plans for further intensive rehab in London in September.
Solicitor Susie Elliott commented: “I am continuously struck by her incredible determination and courage. She is an inspiration to us all”.
