Miracle mechanic
By Maurice Garvey
DOCTORS did not think he would walk again, however Paul De Ferriera is living proof of a miracle – not only walking, but back working as a mechanic and rebuilding his life, following a serious road accident three years ago.
Clondalkin father-of-two Paul (37) suffered a horrific head injury after a quad bike collision with a truck on Neilstown Road in October 2016.
Mechanic Paul De Ferriera fixing a car in the garage (Image: Paddy Barrett)
Despite numerous operations, it was not looking good for Paul or his family, who kept a bedside vigil at Beaumont Hospital, Tallaght Hospital, and the National Rehabilitation Hospital (NRH), during the early stages of his round-the-clock care.
Paul’s father Ronnie Spadaccini, who spent nearly two years fighting health authorities to get appropriate treatment for his son, simultaneously becoming a quasi-medical student in the process, was a big factor in the miracle.
St Marks resident Ronnie recounts numerous battles with health authorities, in an effort to bring in a privately sourced occupational therapist for rehab, along with father/son coaching exercises that helped Paul slowly progress via basic everyday tasks such as shaving.
“You do what you have to do,” said Ronnie.
“Early on, doctors didn’t think there was anything they could do, but they couldn’t believe the turnaround. At the end of the day, we never thought we’d see Paul the way he is now.”
Securing a place in the Acquired Brain Ireland (ABI) facility in Lucan, was a crucial step that Ronnie fought for.
At the ABI house, Paul lives independently with other lads recovering from brain injuries, under supervision.
Speaking from the family home in Neilstown, where Paul and his four other siblings grew up, Ronnie and his wife Penny can’t hold back the joy in describing their sons recovery.
“He is the same guy as before,” said Ronnie.
“He is working three, sometimes three-and-a-half days a week at Paul Geraghty’s Cloverhill Auto’s in Cherry Orchard, and can do all the same things, diagnostics, timing belts, re-tuning engines. We talk the same as before, he cooks, and gets the bus with his daughter to Liffey Valley on the weekends.”
Bizarrely, the family were through the mill of a devastating injury before, when the fourth oldest Jason, fell 70ft after losing his balance on a balcony in Las Palmas six years ago.
Barbara O’Connell (Chief Executive Acquired Brain Injury Ireland) with brain-injury survivors Jack Doran, Ian Kelly and Paul de Ferreira outside the Dáil entrance
Penny and Ronnie went to Jason’s bedside in Spain, and he eventually recovered from his coma and injuries, another remarkable turnaround, but not one they want to go through again.
“I prayed to St Anthony,” confesses Penny.
“The people around here, his job, were great, his friends started up a GoFundMe. It’s the way it is with working class communities,” she said.
‘We knew what to expect,” explains Ronnie, comparing the aftermath of Paul’s accident, to that of Jason’s.
Of greater concern now for Ronnie, is securing €5m in funding for a proposed ABI regional neuro-rehabilitation centre with 25 beds for patients with brain injuries.
ABI say the centre would take pressure off acute hospitals by removing ‘bed blockers’, the centre could take people from the NRH or those on the waiting list, save money in health and help recovering patients reach their maximum potential.
Ronnie has campaigned outside the Dáil, and after contacting local TD Eoin Ó Broin last year, was delighted the Sinn Féin politician hosted ABI in the Oireachtas for a briefing on the matter a week ago.
“It is imperative that ABI get this funding, and I applaud Eoin Ó Broin for getting them in to discuss it,” said Ronnie.
“All Paul did when he was in Tallaght Hospital was take up a bed space. There is a lack of rehab for brain-injury patients in hospitals. This [campaign] is not for Paul, but for other patients.
“The ABI house in Lucan opened after Christmas and the work they do is second to none. I’m a firm believer in the quicker you can work with a brain injury – and I know that all patients are different – they need rehab asap, and they need the ABI.”
Deputy Ó Broin posted a picture on social media of the “packed” ABI briefing in the Oireachtas, citing “important priorities, including €5m funding for a regional neuro-rehabilitation centre.”
