A major fundraising drive is underway to allow a Tipperary woman access medical interventions abroad.
Last November Serena Kinane was in a horrific car crash and suffered a serious spinal cord injury.
She had emergency surgery in the Mater Hospital and spent weeks in ICU on ventilation.
Over the next number of days her strong will and determination saw Serena learn to speak and week by week she needed the ventilation less and less.
Serena is exploring medical interventions which will be most beneficial to her in the future.
Fundraiser organisers say Serena needs people’s support for her journey to recovery to begin abroad.
The fundraising target is 200,000 euro so far over 30,000 euro has been raised in 2 weeks.
Serena spent Christmas and New Year in the Spinal Trauma Unit learning to sit upright so she could be transferred to a wheelchair.
She learned to swallow again and now no longer requires her feeding tube.
In January she was transferred to University Hospital Limerick and then to the National Rehabilitation Hospital (NRH).
Serena is 21 years old and studying to be a secondary school teacher in Mary Immaculate College, she is determined to finish her Degree.
Friends and organisers of the GoFund Me say at present she has very limited body function but this does not hamper her fun loving spirit and determination.
They add that Serena is a strong and sometimes stubborn young woman and these traits are helping her every day to strive towards a bright and independent future.
Her parents Colm and Yvonne, her family and friends would like to thank all the doctors, nurses, physiotherapists, occupational therapists and auxiliary staff for all the expert care she has received and continues to receive in the NRH.
Serena parents are exploring the necessary house adaptations, transport needs and care required for their daughter to come home.
While her therapists are working with Serena to prepare her for a life in a wheelchair, Serena is not giving up.
There are many medical interventions and therapies available in other countries.
To donate to the fundraiser click here.
