Clare woman details her family's experience with the Irish Cancer Society ahead of Relay for Life 2025 – ‘They were always there for us'
The disease is vicious, yet it unites humanity in a strange way. Cancer knows no difference in age, race, gender, religious beliefs, and doesn't care if you've done good or bad in your life. It also unifies us in a fight for a cure – and the only ways you can help, if you're not a medical professional, are through fundraising, donating, or supporting.
One such way communities support the fight for a cure is through Relay for Life. An annual fundraising event organised by the Irish Cancer Society, Relay for Life has been ongoing in Ennis, County Clare, since 2018 – with 2025 marking the sixth event in the Banner County.
The Irish Cancer Society describes Relay for like as a 'community fundraising event' to 'raise money for cancer research and support services'. According to the charity, it is a '24-hour event where teams walk or run around a track, symbolising the ongoing fight against cancer, with at least one team member on the track at all times'. The event also includes celebrations for cancer survivors, memorials for those lost to cancer, and opportunities for community members to connect and support each other.
Pamela O'Malley and her family got involved with Relay for Life after her husband's experience with cancer and the help they received from the Irish Cancer Society. Tony O'Malley was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia in 2014, a type of cancer which is normally found in children.
'At the time, Tony was 36 and I was 34 with three young kids,' Pamela said. 'So yeah, talk about pulling the rug from underneath us.'
After his GP suspected his diagnosis on a Friday afternoon, Pamela said the process of official diagnosis and starting treatment moved quickly.
'On the Friday evening, Tony was admitted to University Hospital Limerick's haematology oncology unit for bone marrow and blood testing,' she said. 'Saturday morning, a consultant came around to see us and confirmed it was as our GP had expected, it was leukaemia. On Saturday afternoon then he was discharged from UHL to be sent straight to St James' Hospital in Dublin. So, it happened fast, all in the space of one weekend. It was a rough enough couple of weeks with him starting his treatment, chemo, drug therapy, and radiation.'
'Tony was basically in Dublin from February until the end of November, between having the chemo, drug therapy, radiation, and he then needed a bone marrow transplant,' Pamela continued. 'Luckily his sister was a match, so he had that on July 31. The first 100 days after the bone marrow transplant are critical, basically, anything that will go wrong will go wrong in those 100 days. So, he was in hospital then until the end of September and then we were moved to an apartment that is… I'm not sure, I think it's kind of owned by the bone marrow trust and used for patients who are not living near the hospital, if that makes sense. So, we lived there for a couple of months.'
'He was then back into the hospital on daily visits to get everything checked, and was admitted if he had a high temperature or any side effects or any illness or bugs or anything presented,' Pamela said. 'When we were in the apartment, even though we were of walking distance to the hospital, after the bone marrow transplant with Tony's immune system being so low and everything, he couldn't really walk anywhere. We did have the availability of a transport system from the Irish Cancer Society, where we could be collected from the apartment and dropped to the hospital and vice versa, which was fantastic. It's a fantastic facility to be offered.'
Tony was thankfully on the road to recovery by the end of November 2014 and his hospital visits started getting pushed out from weekly to every two weeks - and now he only has to visit once a month.
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'Currently, he's doing great,' Pamela said. 'He still visits St James' Hospital once a month. The team are absolutely fantastic up there. We were very much involved with the Irish Cancer Society's Daffodil Centre in James's hospital, and their support was phenomenal. It was like, I suppose, a safety net. From the minute we met Tony's medical team in the hospital, the social workers, the Daffodil nurses, and support team were just unbelievable to us. They were always there for us, for questions to be answered, for supports to be put in place for us, they were fantastic. And really, I suppose you never know what's there, or the services that are there for you through these organisations, until you actually need them.'
'Another thing to mention, with the kids being so young and our world turned upside down, we were put in touch with play therapy and counselling services for both the kids, ourselves, and as a whole family unit,' Pamela added. 'It was another fantastic resource that at the time, when you're in the throes of it, you don't think that you'll need - but I suppose it's the aftermath and the children's thinking around it you need to think about. We were put in touch with the play therapy services through the Irish Cancer Society, and we attended our own counselling, myself and Tony, through the Cancer Support Services Centre at UHL.'
Pamela and her family started attending the Relay for Life events in Ennis from the first year and this year she joined the committee.
'We attended the event in 2018, and we were absolutely blown away by it, by the sense of community, relating to others who have gone through similar journeys, experiences, you know, meeting other families and kids and the whole lot,' she said. 'It was just unbelievable, to be honest. So, we were very much drawn towards it and looking forward to the next year's event. We would have attended a lot of the meetings over the years, the cheque presentations, the coffee mornings, the mini fundraisers, and community events in preparation for the relay itself. We just got to know the committee members really well, and they asked us if we like to get on board, myself and my sister, who's another cancer survivor, and the two of us said yes.'
'It's amazing to see the community spirit around the relay,' Pamela continued. 'There's an amazing community there, the number of volunteers that step into these roles, that have been and have had and still have family members affected by cancer, that want to give back in some small way possible. Even our kids, like our eldest daughter, she's just home from holidays this weekend, she's coming straight into the relay – she'll throw on her t-shirt and she's ready to pull the sleeves up and work. The kids absolutely love it.'
'Even the rest of the committee in Ennis, they're so facilitating and so thoughtful to every survivor that comes in the gate of Tim Smythe Park at the weekend,' she said. 'You know, until you're there and until you have experienced it, it's very difficult to put into words, but it's just amazing.'
Pamela said one of her Relay for Life highlights is sitting in the 'survivors' tent' and having conversations with people who have been on similar journeys to her family.
'I sat there last year and the year before with my husband, and to have a conversation with somebody who has been on a similar journey, who found the chemotherapies gruelling, who found the different treatment plans, just to see that 10 or 15 years later, they're still alive and kicking, and they're flying it, it most certainly does give you hope,' she said. 'Another chapter that we have ahead of us now is that my husband, unfortunately, got graft-versus-host disease in his lungs during his recovery period after the cancer. So, he's now on a the transplant list in the National Hospital since February this year. But even through the Relay for Life, we have met family members and friends of people who have had lung transplants.'
'It's simple conversations that have opened doorways and pathways to know enough people who have come on similar journeys and similar paths, and to know that there is the treatment out there, the research, the work that's being done is Trojan in comparison to years ago,' Pamela continued. 'We've come a long way, I think.'
The O'Malley family would like to give a special word of thanks to the Irish Cancer Society, and to all of Tony's medical teams, from his GP to the medical teams in St James', UHL and the Mater Hospital, for their continued care.
The Relay for Life Ennis takes place in Tim Smythe Park (Fairgreen) on Saturday, June 21 into Sunday, June 22. This year's line-up of entertainment and activity includes the likes of yoga, face-painting, dance, DJs, choirs, a ukulele group, and more.
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Irish Independent
5 hours ago
- Irish Independent
Clare woman details her family's experience with the Irish Cancer Society ahead of Relay for Life 2025 – ‘They were always there for us'
The disease is vicious, yet it unites humanity in a strange way. Cancer knows no difference in age, race, gender, religious beliefs, and doesn't care if you've done good or bad in your life. It also unifies us in a fight for a cure – and the only ways you can help, if you're not a medical professional, are through fundraising, donating, or supporting. One such way communities support the fight for a cure is through Relay for Life. An annual fundraising event organised by the Irish Cancer Society, Relay for Life has been ongoing in Ennis, County Clare, since 2018 – with 2025 marking the sixth event in the Banner County. The Irish Cancer Society describes Relay for like as a 'community fundraising event' to 'raise money for cancer research and support services'. According to the charity, it is a '24-hour event where teams walk or run around a track, symbolising the ongoing fight against cancer, with at least one team member on the track at all times'. The event also includes celebrations for cancer survivors, memorials for those lost to cancer, and opportunities for community members to connect and support each other. Pamela O'Malley and her family got involved with Relay for Life after her husband's experience with cancer and the help they received from the Irish Cancer Society. Tony O'Malley was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia in 2014, a type of cancer which is normally found in children. 'At the time, Tony was 36 and I was 34 with three young kids,' Pamela said. 'So yeah, talk about pulling the rug from underneath us.' After his GP suspected his diagnosis on a Friday afternoon, Pamela said the process of official diagnosis and starting treatment moved quickly. 'On the Friday evening, Tony was admitted to University Hospital Limerick's haematology oncology unit for bone marrow and blood testing,' she said. 'Saturday morning, a consultant came around to see us and confirmed it was as our GP had expected, it was leukaemia. On Saturday afternoon then he was discharged from UHL to be sent straight to St James' Hospital in Dublin. So, it happened fast, all in the space of one weekend. It was a rough enough couple of weeks with him starting his treatment, chemo, drug therapy, and radiation.' 'Tony was basically in Dublin from February until the end of November, between having the chemo, drug therapy, radiation, and he then needed a bone marrow transplant,' Pamela continued. 'Luckily his sister was a match, so he had that on July 31. The first 100 days after the bone marrow transplant are critical, basically, anything that will go wrong will go wrong in those 100 days. So, he was in hospital then until the end of September and then we were moved to an apartment that is… I'm not sure, I think it's kind of owned by the bone marrow trust and used for patients who are not living near the hospital, if that makes sense. So, we lived there for a couple of months.' 'He was then back into the hospital on daily visits to get everything checked, and was admitted if he had a high temperature or any side effects or any illness or bugs or anything presented,' Pamela said. 'When we were in the apartment, even though we were of walking distance to the hospital, after the bone marrow transplant with Tony's immune system being so low and everything, he couldn't really walk anywhere. We did have the availability of a transport system from the Irish Cancer Society, where we could be collected from the apartment and dropped to the hospital and vice versa, which was fantastic. It's a fantastic facility to be offered.' Tony was thankfully on the road to recovery by the end of November 2014 and his hospital visits started getting pushed out from weekly to every two weeks - and now he only has to visit once a month. ADVERTISEMENT Learn more 'Currently, he's doing great,' Pamela said. 'He still visits St James' Hospital once a month. The team are absolutely fantastic up there. We were very much involved with the Irish Cancer Society's Daffodil Centre in James's hospital, and their support was phenomenal. It was like, I suppose, a safety net. From the minute we met Tony's medical team in the hospital, the social workers, the Daffodil nurses, and support team were just unbelievable to us. They were always there for us, for questions to be answered, for supports to be put in place for us, they were fantastic. And really, I suppose you never know what's there, or the services that are there for you through these organisations, until you actually need them.' 'Another thing to mention, with the kids being so young and our world turned upside down, we were put in touch with play therapy and counselling services for both the kids, ourselves, and as a whole family unit,' Pamela added. 'It was another fantastic resource that at the time, when you're in the throes of it, you don't think that you'll need - but I suppose it's the aftermath and the children's thinking around it you need to think about. We were put in touch with the play therapy services through the Irish Cancer Society, and we attended our own counselling, myself and Tony, through the Cancer Support Services Centre at UHL.' Pamela and her family started attending the Relay for Life events in Ennis from the first year and this year she joined the committee. 'We attended the event in 2018, and we were absolutely blown away by it, by the sense of community, relating to others who have gone through similar journeys, experiences, you know, meeting other families and kids and the whole lot,' she said. 'It was just unbelievable, to be honest. So, we were very much drawn towards it and looking forward to the next year's event. We would have attended a lot of the meetings over the years, the cheque presentations, the coffee mornings, the mini fundraisers, and community events in preparation for the relay itself. We just got to know the committee members really well, and they asked us if we like to get on board, myself and my sister, who's another cancer survivor, and the two of us said yes.' 'It's amazing to see the community spirit around the relay,' Pamela continued. 'There's an amazing community there, the number of volunteers that step into these roles, that have been and have had and still have family members affected by cancer, that want to give back in some small way possible. Even our kids, like our eldest daughter, she's just home from holidays this weekend, she's coming straight into the relay – she'll throw on her t-shirt and she's ready to pull the sleeves up and work. The kids absolutely love it.' 'Even the rest of the committee in Ennis, they're so facilitating and so thoughtful to every survivor that comes in the gate of Tim Smythe Park at the weekend,' she said. 'You know, until you're there and until you have experienced it, it's very difficult to put into words, but it's just amazing.' Pamela said one of her Relay for Life highlights is sitting in the 'survivors' tent' and having conversations with people who have been on similar journeys to her family. 'I sat there last year and the year before with my husband, and to have a conversation with somebody who has been on a similar journey, who found the chemotherapies gruelling, who found the different treatment plans, just to see that 10 or 15 years later, they're still alive and kicking, and they're flying it, it most certainly does give you hope,' she said. 'Another chapter that we have ahead of us now is that my husband, unfortunately, got graft-versus-host disease in his lungs during his recovery period after the cancer. So, he's now on a the transplant list in the National Hospital since February this year. But even through the Relay for Life, we have met family members and friends of people who have had lung transplants.' 'It's simple conversations that have opened doorways and pathways to know enough people who have come on similar journeys and similar paths, and to know that there is the treatment out there, the research, the work that's being done is Trojan in comparison to years ago,' Pamela continued. 'We've come a long way, I think.' The O'Malley family would like to give a special word of thanks to the Irish Cancer Society, and to all of Tony's medical teams, from his GP to the medical teams in St James', UHL and the Mater Hospital, for their continued care. The Relay for Life Ennis takes place in Tim Smythe Park (Fairgreen) on Saturday, June 21 into Sunday, June 22. This year's line-up of entertainment and activity includes the likes of yoga, face-painting, dance, DJs, choirs, a ukulele group, and more.
Irish Examiner
2 days ago
- Irish Examiner
Nothing will improve at UHL without a problem-solving culture
The latest news from an 'out of control' University Hospital Limerick, as reported by Niamh Griffin in Wednesday's Irish Examiner, will have caused anxiety for thousands of patients and their families throughout the Mid-West. The circumstances described are familiar to anyone who has ever attended the hospital's A&E. My first impression of University Hospital Limerick, as someone who worked for years as a Lean strategist in the corporate sector, was that it didn't have a problem-solving culture. File picture: Brendan Gleeson Over the past few years I have been through University Hospital Limerick's patient journey many times with loved ones. My first impression of the hospital, as someone who worked for years as a Lean strategist in the corporate sector, was that it didn't have a problem-solving culture. The contrast between being a professional in a solution-orientated workplace where everyone is focused on the same goal, and being the helpless helper to a vulnerable patient where the system seems designed to frustrate people trying to do their jobs, couldn't be greater. Over the course of many, many admissions and discharges with different family members, I learned my first impression was right. Raising concerns In the summer of 2023, my family and I encountered many problems in UHL. Accident and emergency was a nightmare on every visit and we had numerous issues on the wards, both with prescriptions and with obtaining critical medical information on discharge. I complained and information was logged on UHL's 'electronic incident system' which is probably similar to what Dr Suzanne Crowe wrote about in her excellent article in the Irish Examiner, . I knew I'd never hear about these complaints again and I was right. Meeting with the hospital PALS (Patient Advocacy and Liaison Service) filled me with hope. However, this was short lived as they explained that no action would be taken. I was advised to email the HSE at 'Your Service, Your Say'. That didn't make sense, because what I needed was immediate help from a healthcare professional in UHL. I was told "that's the complaints process". What's the point of raising concerns if no action is taken? The more time we spent in UHL, the more mistakes we experienced - serious mistakes on prescriptions, little to no communication on discharge, inaccurate information on discharge documents, blood results and changes to medications not followed up on – potentially life-threatening mistakes became the norm. I submitted three written complaints to the hospital on its unsafe prescription process, unsafe discharge process and unsafe practices in accident & emergency. Naively I thought UHL would implement immediate improvements, yet I was wrong. In response to one of my complaints, UHL outlined a list of actions they were going to take yet not one action they had actually done. A response to a complaint with no action taken is archaic and only serves to further frustrate patients and their families. What's the point of having a complaints process if no action is taken? In January 2025 we ended up back in UHL's A&E department, which was the start of a new low in terms of my perception of UHL's problem-solving culture. The A&E department was still overcrowded and a frightening place to be for patients. It was difficult to get information, slow to get tests done, slow to get results back and test results weren't evaluated properly. Keeping patients on trolleys for days and the consequent lack of privacy, comfort, dignity and safety of patients has over time become normalised. Inside UHL's Emergency Department on March 16, 2024. Picture: Mike Daly Because no improvements had been made after my previous complaints, during our time in UHL, almost two years later, we experienced exactly the same problems as before yet the impact had become more life-threatening. We experienced mistake after mistake, many missed medical evaluations - poor processes delivering unsafe healthcare. All of the above isn't surprising, because without a problem-solving culture, problems aren't solved. When problems aren't solved, they grow bigger, the impact to the patient becomes more serious and more patients are impacted. This is referred to as the snowball effect - what starts as a snowflake, if not stopped, will one day become an avalanche. I yet again submitted three written complaints to UHL on exactly the same processes in my previous complaints - their unsafe prescription process, unsafe discharge process and unsafe practices in accident & emergency. I hope UHL take my complaints seriously and solve their problems so other patients don't experience what we did - yet I don't have much faith that they will. Without a problem-solving culture, organisations will go around in circles trying to solve their problems only to find that these problems grow bigger, become more widespread and affect more people, in this case UHL's staff and patients. A problem-solving culture Problem-solving is a key element of Lean, which is a way of thinking and working that focuses on creating value for customers (in this case care for patients) while minimising waste which is everything that gets in the way of delivering value (care). Lean is a culture of deep respect for people, respect for their time, skills and their unlimited potential. One way a hospital can show this level of respect for both their staff and patients is by implementing a robust problem-solving culture. I have immense respect for UHL's outstanding staff, they always went above and beyond delivering the best care to my loved ones. In stark contrast, the hospital management's inability to solve their problems caused my family and I much stress and resulted in unsafe healthcare on numerous occasions. In a problem-solving culture, staff and patients are encouraged to highlight problems, problems are made visible and not hidden in electronic systems, problems are discussed with leadership, staff are trained on and involved in problem-solving which is recognised and rewarded. This culture creates an environment of trust and engagement which leads to safer healthcare. Siobhain Danaher: 'A problem-solving culture creates a more skilled workforce, builds immense trust, increases engagement and solves problems, all delivering safer healthcare.' Without a problem-solving culture, staff and patients are afraid to speak up and nothing changes even if they do. This is dangerous as problems just grow bigger and become more widespread affecting more staff and more patients. This culture creates an environment of mistrust and disengagement which leads to a reduction in safe healthcare – something that has been seen over and over in UHL. I want what everyone who attends UHL wants - safe healthcare that we can trust. A robust problem-solving culture delivers just that. Here are the first steps to embedding a problem solving culture: Commitment from leadership: If you don't have commitment from leadership, stop right there, culture change only occurs from the top. Consistent leadership presence at the frontline, supporting those who deliver care to patients is essential to a problem-solving culture. Upskill your team: Problem-solving is a continuous learning curve and there is no end to the depths of understanding you can reach through problem-solving. The more staff that are upskilled in problem-solving, the more problems will be solved, the safer the healthcare. Highlight problems in real time: When you notice a problem, the problem is at its smallest, but the longer you leave a problem, the bigger it will become. This is why highlighting problems in real time and solving problems as soon as possible is so important. Make problems visible: The most dangerous problems are those hidden away in electronic systems, collecting digital dust, never again to see the light of day. Making problems visible ensures they receive the spotlight and attention they deserve. Create an escalation process: An escalation process ensures problems are escalated to leadership as soon as possible, and that leadership's progress in solving these problems is monitored visually - no more hiding behind electronic systems. Recognise and reward: 'Problems are treasures, reward the messenger' is a wonderful quote from Pascal Dennis. This sums up a problem-solving culture where those who bring problems to light are rewarded for finding such treasures – the very opposite of what we hear about in most whistleblower accounts that make the news. A problem-solving culture creates a more skilled workforce, builds immense trust, increases engagement and solves problems, all delivering safer healthcare. Isn't that what every healthcare environment should be aiming for? Siobhain Danaher is a freelance Lean strategist with years of experience in corporate environments and the pharmaceutical sector. Read More Why is Beaumont getting a new emergency department and not UHL? asks campaigner
The Irish Sun
09-06-2025
- The Irish Sun
Horrifying photos show the true cause of man's itchy eye – after he found a LEECH feasting on his eyeball
A BRIT travel agent's trip to test holiday hotspots became a "nightmare" when he discovered a leech sucking on his EYEBALL. Tony Exall was on a jungle tour near West Papua, Indonesia on May 22 this year when his left eye began to irritate him. Advertisement 6 Tony Exall was on a jungle tour near West Papua, Indonesia as part of his job as a travel agent Credit: Kennedy Newsand Media 6 He blamed his eye irritation on sweat or a tiny bug Credit: Kennedy Newsand Media 6 Tony's bloodshot eye and the small black bloodsucker can be seen in the photo Credit: Kennedy Newsand Media The 58-year-old blamed it on sweat or a tiny bug but two hours later a fellow visitor spotted that he actually had a leech on his eyeball. A horrifying photo shows Tony's bloodshot eye with the small black bloodsucker latched to the white area called the sclera. Tony grew concerned it might wriggle its way behind his eye so ended his trip early to find medical help. After six hours and trips to two hospitals a doctor extracted the leech using tweezers - despite the creature pulling on his eyeball tissue to hang on. Advertisement Read more on leeches Tony, who owns travel company Philippine Dive Holidays , was in Indonesia to test out locations for customers when he decided to head on a photography trip. The travel agent avoided catching an infection and achieved his aim of snapping a rare king bird-of-paradise minutes before the incident. He posted the video to Facebook where users described it as 'stuff nightmares are made of' and like 'something from a horror movie'. Tony, from Oxted, Surrey, said: "I came over here to investigate different places to work with in Indonesia so I thought, while I'm here, I want to do a bit of bird snapping. Advertisement Most read in Health Tested "We were waiting for the bird to turn up and I was sweating buckets. "I could feel something in my eye but I just thought it was a bug. I tried to get rid of it but couldn't so I tried to ignore it. NHS animated video on eye health "There were leeches everywhere and I must have used the back of my hand to wipe the sweat so I essentially wiped it into my eye. "A couple hours later we went to move on to somewhere else and one of my spotters pointed out the leech in my eye. Advertisement "My biggest concern was that it would get round the back of my eye. He tried to pull it out with his fingers. "He was pinching my eyeball to get it out but the leech was fixed onto my eyeball. I tried rubbing it but I couldn't get it out." Tony had trekked two hours through the jungle near Malagufuk, West Papua, to reach an area known for king bird-of-paradise sightings. After having the leech pulled from his eye, Tony was prescribed eye drops and antibiotics to make sure he didn't develop an infection. Advertisement You hear these stories about tropical diseases and infections and having one in your eye is not the best place to have one Tony Exall Tony said: "We went to two hospitals to find someone that knew something about eyes. "At first he tried to remove it and that was quite sore because a leech grabs hold of something and starts to suck the blood. "He started to gently pull the leech which was quite sore as it was something pulling on my eyeball. "My next concern was how do you get it off my eye without leaving anything behind. Advertisement "You hear these stories about tropical diseases and infections and having one in your eye is not the best place to have one. "The doctor then squirted some anaesthetic drops onto my eye, got some tweezers and pop, off it came. 6 Tony says there were leeches everywhere, and that he must have had one on his hand which he accidentally rubbed in his eye Credit: Kennedy Newsand Media 6 Minutes before the incident he was snapping a rare king bird-of-paradise Credit: Kennedy Newsand Media Advertisement 6 Some anaesthetic drops and some tweezers helped remove the leech Credit: Kennedy Newsand Media "The tissue of my eye was being pulled. I have never had that sensation before." After sharing the "squeamish" photos of his eye on Facebook, freaked-out users were quick to comment on his bizarre experience. One user said: "I'm not usually squeamish but that is stuff from horror movies! Hope everything is okay now." Advertisement Another added: "Omg you need a trigger warning on this post. Sounds awful, hope you recover quickly." A third said: "Stuff nightmares are made of." A fourth added: "Dangerous stuff, this photography." What to do if you have a foreign object in your eye Advise the casualty not to rub their eye as this could make it worse. Ask them to sit down facing a light. Stand behind them and gently open their eyelids with your thumbs. Ask them to look right, left, up and down as you look closely at the eye. If you can see something, ask them to tip their head backwards and wash it out by pouring clean water from the inner corner from a glass or jug. If this doesn't work and the object is still on the surface of the eye, try to remove it with a moist piece of gauze or the damp corner of a clean handkerchief or the object isn't easy to remove or the eye is very painful, seek medical advice - ring 111 or attend an Eye Casualty, Emergency Department or Urgent Treatment Centre. Source: St John Ambulance
