Melanie Cleary receives award for raising awareness around dangers of Thrombosis
World Thrombosis Day will be be held in Limerick on October 13 and UHL and the Maternity Hospital will be illuminated in red
MELANIE Cleary was presented with the National VTE Champion award at the Thrombosis Ireland VTE Exemplar Awards in Dublin for bravely sharing the story of her daughter's death potentially preventable blood clots in a campaign to raise the dangers of venous thromboembolism (VTE).
Melanie had been nominated for her successful advocacy for HSE National Guidelines to ensure that what happened to Eve does not happen to any other family.
After the awards ceremony, Melanie said:
“I am honoured to have received the VTE National Champion award for 2024. Thank you Thrombosis Ireland and all the Mater Hospital staff for making us feel so welcome. And thank you to everyone who nominated me.
Melanie dedicated the award to her daughter Eve who died in 2019 from blood clots in her lungs after being discharged from University Hospital Limerick:
“Everything I have done is for my darling Eve. When I had Eve, my dreams came true and even when she left she took me on a journey to make the system better. After heart attacks and strokes, VTE is the third highest killer in Ireland. We really need more education around the dangers of thrombosis.”
According to Thrombosis Ireland doctors estimate that there are approximately 4,000 deaths per year in Ireland from hospital acquired VTE of which as many as 1,900 are preventable.
World Thrombosis Day will be marked in Limerick next Sunday, October 13 with UHL and the Maternity Hospital being illuminated in red. Other landmarks that have been illuminated for World Thrombosis Day include The Coliseum in Rome and the Empire State Building in New York.
“I am pleased that the HSE is participating in World Thrombosis Day by illuminating their buildings including UHL and wrapping a rapid response jeep with information about VTE," said Melanie. "I am hopeful that new national guidelines to prevent VTE can be rolled out in Eve’s name as soon as possible.”