The grieving daughter of the gran who became Ireland’s third victim of killer coronavirus, revealed the heartache of watching her fight for breath in her final moments.
Eileen O’Neill, 88, passed away on Wednesday after bravely battling the deadly virus at St Vincent’s University Hospital in Dublin.
And as they struggled to cope with not being able to give her a proper funeral, they warned the nation: Anyone can contract it.
Heartbroken Siobhan Cullen said: “Having spent her final hours with her, seeing her fighting to breathe for hours and what we as a family have experienced, I don’t wish anyone else to go through this.”
Grandmother-of-five Eileen, who was from Loughlinstown in Dublin, suffered a stroke in April last year and also had respiratory problems.
Siobhan added: “She never complained and feared the thought of returning to hospital.
“So as her primary carer and being very much on top of all her meds, etc, I watched her like a hawk.
"Apart from being tired which she often was, I had no concerns.
“On Friday she slipped at lunchtime and her carer phoned Paramedic Lift Assist as mum was unable to get up and carers were not allowed help, even though she was a tiny thing.
“He came and stayed around for a while. Shortly after he left she said she felt quite weak, her speech became slurred and she slumped to one side in the chair. The ambulance was called.
“She’d a very high temperature but she could also have been having another stroke so they persuaded her to go in an ambulance so a suspected stroke could be treated.
"As soon as she arrived in A&E she was isolated and tested for the virus.”
Once she tested positive, Eileen had to be kept away from the rest of the family.
A heartbroken Siobhan said her own mother didn’t recognise her after she visited her in hospital in a full Hazmat suit and mask.
“She was in total isolation fully with it to the end with what looked to her, like people in space suits coming in and out.
“Even when I got in she didn’t recognise me with my hair completely covered, masked, goggles, and face shield. God help her. So frightening.”
Siobhan has urged people to take the international pandemic seriously as her entire family has been in self-isolation since Monday.
She said: “Please, please please listen to mum’s story and go overboard on protecting yourselves.
"If mum, who hadn’t left the house since mid February and was only in contact with six people - all symptom free, got it, anyone could.
“I want to publicly thank all the staff in Vincent’s who looked after her and if people would please, if they want to do anything, make donations to Feed the Heroes.”
The Department of Health confirmed the third death on Thursday night - but in line with protocol, did not name Mrs O’Neill.
The first fatality in the North yesterday now brings the death toll on the island to four.
In addition, there are now 557 confirmed cases in the Republic after a dramatic spike of 191 cases yesterday. [thur]
The average age of people getting the killer bug is 43, “a youngish profile” according to
the Department of Health’s Chief Medical Officer, Dr Tony Holohan.
At a press briefing in the Department of Health on Baggot Street in Dublin last night,
Dr Holohan said: “I would like to extend my condolences to the family and friends of this patient.
“It is too early to see any impact of our social distancing measures.
“This data underscores the importance of younger people to rigorously follow public health advice and social distancing measures.”
Dr Breda Smyth, Director of Public Health Medicine, HSE, added: “Healthcare workers are at the frontline of this pandemic.
“While it is heartening to see social distancing measures taken seriously across society, this must continue in order to protect the most vulnerable and support our healthcare staff throughout this pandemic.”
Of the 350 cases of coronavirus analysed in detail up to midnight on Tuesday,
it’s roughly 50/5 % are male and 43% are female, with 26 clusters
A total of 31% of cases have been hospitalised, with another 2% (7 cases) admitted to intensive care.
Frontline healthcare workers account for 84 of the cases, 28 of whom are associated with foreign travel.
Dublin still has the highest number of cases at 172, followed by Cork (62) and Limerick (14).
But what may surprise some people is that the average age of people getting sick is 43.
This could be viewed as good news because if the average age of a person getting the bug was older, the mortality rates would be greater.
Younger people are fitter and their immune systems better-equipped to fight the virus.
Dr Holohan said that the real danger young people and children pose is that they might spread the disease to more vulnerable people without realising.
He said: “More of concern is that we think younger people and children might become a source of transmission, rather than, per se, for the most part thev burden of severity.
“We do know that the burden of severity with this illness is associated with older people and people with underlying conditions.”
The medical experts were also asked if the hordes that travelled to and from Cheltenham for the races last week could have caused a spike in numbers here.
They ruled this out as anything to be concerned about, according to the stats they have.
