An American woman has told of her gratitude to Ireland for the care her husband received when he fell seriously ill on a cruise ship.
Retired Paul Whalen, 70, spent over a month in Dublin’s Mater Hospital after his heart stopped when he contracted pneumonia.
And 68-year-old wife Nancy praised the “care and caring” of the Irish people who gave her moral support during their long stint here as he recovered.
The Boston residents had been on a four-week cruise around Europe, setting off from Florida on April 15.
They planned to spend an additional week in Paris but their plans were scuppered when Paul fell ill on May 5 while their ship was docked at Dublin Port.
Retired teacher Nancy revealed he had been feeling unwell for some time, adding: “He just wasn’t getting better.
“I said, ‘Let’s just go down to the hospital, there’s one on the ship.
“He said, ‘I’m too tired to even walk to the elevator.’ I thought, ‘This is not good.’
“I called for someone to bring up a wheelchair to bring him down and within 10 minutes of our arrival, his heart stopped. The timing was miraculous, honestly.
“Each of his lungs was filled with almost 90% pneumonia, there was no oxygen coming to his heart.
“By a miracle he was surrounded by doctors and machines and they used chest compressions and intubated him to get his heart started.
“I was sitting outside and the nurse came out and said, ‘I just want you to know Paul’s heart stopped’. Well, my heart stopped when she said that.”
Nancy was told to go to her room and pack their belongings while they waited for an ambulance.
Paul was taken to the Mater’s Intensive Care Unit and remained in hospital for more than a month before finally being flown home by air ambulance on June 11.
Despite being unwell, Paul was able to enjoy his 70th birthday in style as staff decorated his room with balloons and banners and the head nurse even made him a carrot cake.
Nancy said: “Everyone signed cards, people stopped by. It was the nicest 70th birthday one could have in a hospital.”
