County Derry policewoman who beat locked-in syndrome made MBE

A policewoman who defied the odds to beat locked-in syndrome has been made an MBE for her campaigning work to reform stroke services in Northern Ireland.

Clodagh Dunlop, 45, walked back into full-time work with the police 18 months after suffering a devastating stroke, and a year after being told she might always be confined to an electric wheelchair.

She becomes a Member of the Order of the British Empire in the King’s Birthday Honours.

Mrs Dunlop, from Magherafelt, underwent a procedure called a mechanical thrombectomy to remove a clot in her head the day after she collapsed in April 2015.

She is still battling to overcome life-altering disabilities and said she may have escaped any major side effects of her stroke if the treatment had been available immediately.

She said: “It was April 6 2015 and I had a massive brainstem stroke.

“I was on life support in the Royal Victoria Hospital for two-and-a-half weeks and then I was in the acute stroke unit in the Royal for a further six weeks and I was an inpatient in Musgrave Park Hospital for seven months.

“When I had my brainstem stroke as a side effect I developed locked-in syndrome, a very rare neurological condition in which the patient is cognitively aware but they can’t move a single muscle in their body.

“In my case I was blessed in that I was able to blink an eyelid.

“For a period of about six months I communicated with friends and family and the medical staff through blinking, ‘yes’ and ‘no’ blinks. Then later I was able to use an eye-gaze board.”

She added: “The prognosis for locked-in syndrome is that you remain that way forever. Recovery is extremely rare.

“It was a terrifying prognosis for me. I had many emotions.”

Mrs Dunlop said she eventually began to recover and worked tirelessly at improving her movement and speech.

She said: “I am not the person I was before. For anyone who has a stroke, it will always leave its mark. For me, I have right-side hemiplegia now and disabilities from stroke but recovery is an ongoing process.

“When I was discharged from hospital I was in an electric wheelchair and I viewed recovery as a full-time job.

“I would wheel myself in the electric wheelchair and go to the gym from nine to five every day, some days eight to six, and walk on the treadmill for maybe 30 seconds and take a break and go again.

“Many people thought I would never return to work but I was determined. Within 18 months of having a stroke that many thought I would never recover from, I returned to work.

“It was very different. I was a frontline police officer before and I recognised I would not be able to go back to dealing with public order so I returned into a detective role.”

Mrs Dunlop said she become involved in campaigning and fundraising because she was angry that she was not able to have surgery for several hours after her stroke.

She said: “I had had my stroke around midnight but didn’t receive surgery until around 10 hours later.

“I was angry because I knew there was something seriously wrong with me and I felt nobody had listened.

“I wanted mechanical thrombectomy to be available 24/7.

“At the time of my stroke it was only available nine to five, Monday to Friday.

“It is now available here in Northern Ireland seven days a week and the hours have expanded but I still would like it to be 24/7.

“I had my stroke at midnight. If I had had surgery sooner the chances are I wouldn’t have any disabilities now.

“It almost cost me my life and I now live with disabilities. I simply don’t want anybody else living that story.”

Mrs Dunlop said she was also surprised at how quickly statutory services stopped after she was discharged from hospital.

She paid tribute to the work of charities such as the Stroke Association and Chest, Heart and Stroke for raising awareness of the need to improve services for stroke survivors.

She said: “It became a passion for me, I wanted to change things for people.

“People told me I had a great story, but when you live it, it’s pretty horrendous.

“I had a passion to prevent anyone else ever having my experience.”