A BRAVE University of Limerick (UL) student defied the odds by graduating after she was paralysed from the waist down in a car accident in 2009.
Kirsty O’Connor from Tipperary graduated this past week with a postgraduate certificate in Posture, Seating, and Wheelchair Mobility Across the Life from UL’s Faculty of Education and Health Sciences.
Ms O’Connor was tragically left paralysed after a crash on her way to UL in 2009, where she was at the time a second year mental health nursing student.
“I was driving to UL one morning to attend class. It was pouring rain, and I was unaware of a huge flood that had formed at the base of a mountain near where I live. My car hit the water, spun, and hit a wall,” she recalled.
Kirsty was left with a spinal fracture and a traumatic brain injury. The crash landed her in a coma for six weeks and, when she woke, she was paralysed from the waist down and lost sensation in the left side of her body. Her vision was impaired due to nerve damage in her right eye.
“I was told I would probably never walk again and to forget about driving or going back to college. The doctors didn’t know how I was going to recover,” she explained.
After two months in hospital, Kirsty regained feeling in her body and was able to walk again with the help of crutches. She was sent to the National Rehabilitation Hospital in Dún Laoghaire, where she met an occupational therapist who was her inspiration to get back to college.
After four weeks in Dún Laoghaire, Kirsty was able to walk out of the hospital. Three months later, she was able to drive again. Less than a year after the accident, she returned to UL to recommence her degree.
In January 2023, Kirsty took up a job at medical device company Seating Matters as a clinical training manager.
Speaking after her graduation last week, Kirsty said she “undertook this course because I wanted to increase my skill and confidence when conducting seating and postural assessments and ensure patients are getting the best possible outcomes”.
“Looking back, I am still blown away by the transition of where I was in 2009, and where I am today. My experiences have shown me that with the right people around you, you can achieve amazing things.”
Kirsty said that “the cherry on top is seeing that I can help change so many lives, just like that occupational therapist did for me”.
