Limerick TD addresses health rumours, says he's got a 'wake-up call', and waited on chair for 13 hours in ED

A LOCAL TD has put rumours in relation to his health to rest after spending over a week in a Limerick hospital.

Deputy Richard O’Donoghue had quite a scare after suffering a TIA - also referred to as a mini-stroke - which he has described as a "wake-up call".

The Independent TD who represents County Limerick was hospitalised in University Hospital Limerick for eight days and returned home just before the weekend. He says he will be back to “a 100%” in a couple of weeks. 

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“Somebody said to me that you should never travel faster than your guardian angel. And my family and friends have been telling me to slow down," Mr O'Donoghue told Limerick Live this Saturday.

"I do believe it was brought on from workload and exhaustion, and trying to help as many people as we can. But I can't help anyone unless I actually look after myself. So, for the next couple of weeks, I'm going to take a bit of a time-out.”

The father-of-four and grandfather to two grandchildren added: “They got a big shock when it happened because they’re not used to seeing me under pressure or going down. I feel good now, I’m glad to be home. There’s no fear in me, and I have the medication now to make sure I am fine.”

Earlier this Saturday, the TD who lives in Granagh - Ballingarry posted a message on social media in a bid to dispel some rumours which were circulating in relation to his health.  “I got messages today, and we had to put up a clarification on social media because of the amount of calls we were getting from people asking us if we were OK,” he  told Limerick Live.

After going to see his doctor in Adare, Mr O’Donoghue was sent to a medical assessment unit in Ennis, where he was told they didn’t have the equipment to assess his symptoms. He was then sent to the ED in UHL, which was “absolutely choc-a-bloc.”

“When I got there, I was seen by a nurse after about two and a half hours, and they told me that they wanted a consultant that was on, to see me, but they couldn't tell me how long it'd be. And at 11 that night, the ED doctor saw me and said he wanted me to be admitted, but he had no trolley or bed to put me in.”

He noticed the staff were under pressure as there were “people and trolleys everywhere".

After waiting on a chair for 13 hours, he was seen by a doctor. Mr O’Donoghue pointed out: “No fault of the doctors or the medics that were there, what they were dealing with that night was absolutely unreal. I think they had me down as a tier three and there were a lot of people before me, so they were working around the clock.”

While he rests for a couple of weeks, he’s going to take time to relax – that includes watching this Sunday’s Munster final on the TV.

“My wife said you’re not allowed to go this Sunday, you can watch it at home with me. So my two sons are going to take my tickets. I would be confident that Limerick will pull it off, I do believe they'll pull it off by a couple of points.”