Vera Doyle has not had a full night's sleep for more than five years. Her son, Gerard, who was five last November, was born with severe mental and physical handicap as a result of complications during his birth. As a result he requires 24-hour care.
Gerard Doyle, who through his mother sued the South Eastern Health Board and Dr Nasim Osmani Subhi, was awarded £1.125 million in the High Court yesterday. The case is continuing today to establish the extent of the liability.
Mrs Doyle and her husband, also called Gerard, said that they were relieved the case was over for them, and that a settlement had been reached which allowed them to carry on with their lives and to get the professional help their son needed.
They were married in July 1991, and Gerard was born in November 1992. Within an hour of birth, the court was told on Tuesday, he was showing signs of gross neurological abnormality. As he grew older it was clear he was suffering from severe spastic quadriplegia and mental handicap, according to his counsel.
His father worked as a foreman with a building contractor and his mother worked as a machinist, but gave up work to care for her handicapped son. They lived in a mobile home for three years while waiting to build their own home.
Gerard suffers from constant chest infections, which recur at approximately monthly intervals, according to his mother. He has to be fed at four-hourly intervals, and he sleeps very badly, so she is woken in the night. "He never cries, but he does get frustrated," she said.
He is now the size of any five-year-old and would be heavy to lift in any circumstances. But, because he can do nothing to help, he is heavier to lift than a normal child, and his mother is only four feet 11 inches in height. He spends his days in his wheelchair, and needs regular physiotherapy, especially for his breathing.
He recognises the voices of his parents and his grandparents and other close relatives, according to his mother. "He recognises my voice at this stage," added their solicitor, Mr John Flynn, of New Ross.
Up to now the Doyles have survived with the help of their extended families. "My mother and sisters were great. And Gerard. I could not have done without them," said Mrs Doyle.
The award will make it easier to look after Gerard, she said, and enable them to get professional help. They will build an extension to the house so that he can have special accommodation, and provision can be made for a residential carer; these items are part of the settlement.
The settlement involves him being made a ward of court, with his parents as the "committee" which administers his affairs. The money is held by the court and released to the committee as needed.
Asked when he was starting work on the extension, Mr Doyle said: "I'm going to give things a chance to settle down before I think about it."