Documentary to examine how Crusheen family copes with CF

PEOPLE will be given a taste of how the Kett family from Rathclooney, Crusheen deal with cystic fibrosis in a new TV3 documentary series about organ transplant patients.

Six-year-old Hannah, who was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis when she was 18 months old will be featured on Thursday, January 28 at 10pm. For many years to come, Hannah’s quality of life will be maintained by medication but the Ketts know that the prospect of a transplant is in the future.
Life for her parents, Deborah and Patsy, is a constant struggle but they have a fabulous perspective on life and are trying to provide Hannah with the best possible care. Hannah’s mum, Deborah, also runs the Hannah’s Bags charity, www.hannahsbags.ie.
On April 6, 2004, Deborah and Patsy received the bombshell that Hannah had cystic fibrosis. It was a huge shock because there was no history of the disease in the family.
Patsy’s grandmother, Annie from Killaloe, who is 104 this year, had no recollection of anything resembling the disease and similar research into Deborah’s own family also drew a blank.
The diagnosis has completely changed their lives but they continue to make the best out of a very difficult situation. It is impossible to plan holidays or breaks away because Hannah can get sick at any time. Last year, Hannah was only able to attend 104 out of the 183 days during the school year because of sickness.
In a recent extensive interview with The Clare Champion, Deborah spoke about Hannah’s illness to raise public awareness about the condition and to help a regional drive to raise €3.5 million for a specialised Cystic Fibrosis Outpatient and In-Patient Unit at the Mid-Western Regional Hospital, Limerick.
“We do our best to make life as normal as possible. Hannah loves school, playing with her friends and engaging in all types of activities. Hannah is like any girl her age. She loves handbags, make-up and dressing up. She is very socially adept with people.
“Hannah has accepted her condition and deals with it very well. She displays a lot of maturity for a six-year-old. When she was nearly four, she asked me ‘why am I always sick Mammy?’ which was hard. We are very open with her and tell her what we are doing. We have never hidden anything,” she said.
The Gift of Life documentary, which starts on Thursday, January 21 follows the stories of 12 organ transplant patients from all over the country.
At any one time, there are 600 people awaiting an organ transplant in Ireland.