Soap storyline angers spinal injury group

A SOAP opera storyline about a spinal injury victim contemplating suicide will cause more harm than good for those with such injuries, a support service claims.

Emmerdale character Jackson Walsh, who was paralysed in a road accident last year, has been showing signs of depression recently. It has been reported that he will get his boyfriend and mother to help him take his life by crushing tablets into his drink, although producers of the soap aired on ITV and TV3 have refused to comment on the storyline.

But Spinal Injuries Ireland (SII), which helps 9,000 patients and their families, says it is wrong to only show the negative impact of living with such an injury. It said it will distress individuals with a similar injury, particularly those in the early stages of their injury when they are at their most vulnerable.

“We have had members on to us worried about the storyline ... The fear and anxiety this storyline is causing is unnecessary and causing more harm than good,” said a SII spokesperson.

She said that, while it is easy for people to become depressed and isolated as they try to come to terms with the situation, SII begins its support during their time in the National Rehabilitation Hospital and continues it after discharge.

“A person can become institutionalised in their own homes. We try to show them how to live, work and play with their new circumstances without any limitations. There is life after a spinal cord injury, a life just as fulfilling as before.”

One person a week sustains a spinal cord injury in Ireland, mostly through accidents on the road, in sport or at work, and mostly among ages 18 to 35. About 75% do not return to work but SII helps them to achieve social inclusion through education, understanding and consensus.

The storyline on Emmerdale is expected to air in the next few weeks.

* The Samaritans helpline 1850 60 90 90 is open 24 hours or email [e-mail]

* www.spinalinjuries.ie