Heartfelt plea to help roisin walk again

A HEARTFELT plea has been issued to help give a five-year-old Mayo girl the chance of walking again.

Roisin Tansey, Knockmullen, Killasser, Swinford, lost the use of her limbs in January 2013 when she over-extended her neck in a tumble while playing at home. She was diagnosed at Temple Street Hospital in Dublin as suffering from an Arnold-Chiari malformation, a condition in which the lower part of the brain pushes through the hole at the base of the skull and compresses the spinal cord, causing paralysis.

Despite undergoing emergency neurosurgery to relieve the pressure on her spinal cord and spending six months at the National Rehabilitation Hospital in Dun Laoghaire, Roisin has remained paralysed in all four limbs since then.

She is completely dependant on her parents, Damian and Breda, who are seeking to build an extension to their home in order to properly care for their daughter, who also requires physiotherapy on a regular basis. Damian and Breda also have three other children, Caoimhe, Sean and Ciaran.

The Tansey family need a special wet room for showering Roisin, equipment for her bed and special doors that can be operated remotely by Roisin to move around the house. The overall cost is estimated in the region of €40,000.

The Tansey family and friends have established a trust fund through which it is hoped to raise sufficient funds to have Roisin assessed by a top children’s neurological team at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota. 

Said father Damian: “Roisin had been a completely normal child, with full mobility, and no one knew anything of the condition she had until the accident triggered it. We are determined to give her the best of care and medical attention she needs and deserves. We cannot do that, however, without the funding being in place and we thank so many people for their fundraising efforts to date.

“Roisin is such a wonderful girl and we intend to explore every avenue to help her regain the use of her limbs. The pioneering Mayo Clinic offers the best prospect for her.”  

Damian and Breda are seeking financial help of the public to help give Roisin the medical care and attention she needs as well as bringing her to the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota to be assessed by a top children’s neurological team.

The bank details through which donations can be made are as follows: Account Number: 13023046; Sort Code: 93 74 44; IBAN: IE65AIBK93744413023046; Swift Code: AIBKIE2D.

“We greatly appreciate any help people can give,” said mum Breda.