The Mayo News

Ballinrobe man Tony Finnerty recalls how a defibrillator saved his life after he suffered a heart attack at a Mayo match. “If it wasn’t for the defibrillator, that was it.”


Ballinrobe man Tony Finnerty is alive today thanks to quick medical intervention and a defibrillator.

Edwin McGreal

ANYONE uncertain about just how important a defibrillator can be could do worse than talk to Tony Finnerty. A defibrillator in Ballina saved his life.
Tony (59), from Ballinrobe, is a passionate Mayo supporter. He was behind the town goal in James Stephens Park on February 1 last as Mayo started their National League campaign against Derry.
Early in the first half Tony had a sudden massive heart attack. Short of it happening in Mayo General Hospital, he couldn’t have been better positioned. Standing right in front of him was Fionnuala Lavin, a Consultant Cardiologist at Mayo General. A matter of yards away the Order of Malta were positioned with a defibrillator. Ballina based Dr Fergal Ruane was the doctor on call at the game and was at the scene swiftly.
Within moments the Order of Malta’s defibrillator was in use. Tony had no pulse. Three blasts of the defibrillator proved crucial. It was, quite simply, the difference between life and death.
“I was very lucky, I know that,” Tony admits. “If the right people and the defibrillator wasn’t there, then who knows … It made all the difference.”
“Tony couldn’t have been in a better location,” adds Dr Fergal Ruane. “If it wasn’t for the defibrillator that was it. The key to it is the shock and the time of the shock. The first two minutes are the most important and Tony was lucky it happened where it did.”
As we approach August, Tony Finnerty is improving all the time. When The Mayo News catches up with him he’s out on the land doing some fencing with his nephew Mark. Mark and Tony’s long time travelling companions, Mick Conway and Pat Synott, were with him in Ballina on the fateful day.
“I’m fairly active, doing what I can. I still haven’t a massive amount of confidence. You know what you are able for, your body will tell you. Before it happened I would have just done something without thinking twice about it. But I am improving all the time.”
Within a few weeks of the incident Tony was back supporting the Mayo Under 21s in their run to a Connacht title. He was present too at the recent Connacht Senior final victory over Galway. Doing things he likes is a key part of the recovery process.
“I wouldn’t want to get too excited at Mayo games but I never get too excited anyway (laughs). I was shook a bit when (Michael) Meehan scored the goal for Galway the last day. We should have had them well beaten but we came back well after the goal.”
Tony has had a device called an Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillator fitted which he will have for the rest of his life. It regulates his heartbeat and is a defibrillator as well. He is starting cardiac rehab in August. The recovery has been slow but steady. The alternative doesn’t bear thinking about.
“You don’t think something like this will happen to you. You always think it will happen to someone else, that there’s nothing wrong with you. But then it does happen to you and a lot of it then is luck. I happened to be somewhere where there were medical people and, most importantly, a defibrillator.”

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