Young woman who suffered massive organ failure says she wouldn't be alive without Inverclyde Royal's intensive care unit

Emma Carney from Greenock was left fighting for her life after contracting the killer infection sepsis following surgery.

She was put on life support in the unit - which has been on the frontline fighting one of the worst coronavirus outbreaks in the country - after her heart started to fail and her family were called to her bedside.

Now Emma, who bravely pulled through and has since got engaged, has warned health board that they will be putting lives at risk if they move the beds and staff out of Inverclyde.

Emma, 36, of Larkfield, said: "There is no doubt about it, I wouldn't be alive today if there were no intensive care beds in Greenock.

"The doctors had minutes to save my life when they moved me from high dependency.

"I would never have survived an ambulance to Paisley.

"I know that I wouldn't be alive if the intensive care unit was not there at IRH.

"My organs were shutting down and they couldn't find a vein.

"I just wouldn't have made it."

Together with her fiance Stephen McCauley, she relived the awful ordeal she suffered, recalling the moment she fell dangerously ill in Inverclyde Royal.

Emma was diagnosed with the heart condition hypertrophic cardiomyopathy - which causes problems circulating blood round the body - over 10 years ago.

She had a pacemaker fitted and relies on medication, including beta blockers.

Over the festive period her health started to deteriorate until on December 30 she was rushed into A&E.

From there doctors discovered she needed an emergency operation to remove her appendix.

She said: "I didn't realise I was suffering from heart failure and my condition was getting worse.

"I had suffered some mini strokes in the last couple of years.

"My organs were starting to fail.

"It's dangerous to for me to go under general anaesthetic, so it was keyhole surgery."

After the operation she seemed to be recovering well but her heart rate was causing concern.

Emma said: "I was sitting talking to my dad and he thought I looked very pale.

"I was getting really agitated.

"Then everyone started to move at 100mph and after that I cannot remember anything.

"I was put on a ventilator and was on life support.

"It turned out a full-on infection, I had sepsis.

"My best friend Angela was coming in to the hospital to visit me and she arrived in the middle of it all.

"Basically the doctors told my family they would need to come now because it didn't look like I was going to make it.

"My mum lives in Aberdeen and it was a race against time."

Her mum Beth and dad Bob, along with Stephen, were by her bedside and feared the worst.

But thanks to the life-saving team at the IRH, Emma made it and against all the odds she was up and about after a couple of days.

She told the Tele: "The consultant couldn't believe it.

"He did not expect me to bounce back so quickly."

Despite being out of immediate danger, Emma's heart was still failing and she had to be transferred to the Golden Jubilee on January 8 to stabilise.

She was told it was likely she would need a heart transplant and spent a few weeks in the Clydebank hospital where a specialist team managed to stabilise her heart condition with medication.

Emma was discharged on her birthday, January 23, and has been gradually recovering at home while shielding due to the pandemic.

She said: "My life has changed completely.

"For many years I lived a normal life with my heart condition but it has gradually got worse."

A few weeks after she left hospital her partner of three years Stephen, 39, had a big surprise and proposed during a romantic night away in Glasgow.

Postman Stephen, who has a 14-year-old daughter Sarah, added: "I had been planning it for ages and I kept waiting for the right time.

"I had a couple of drinks and plucked up the courage and thankfully she said yes!

"It was terrible in the hospital watching Emma so ill.

"I was a mess."

Like many people in Inverclyde, Emma and Stephen are anxious about the future of local health services.

They have joined others such as Reverend Brian Webster, who also suffered from sepsis and was saved by the Inverclyde Royal intensive care unit, in speaking out.

Emma said: "We need an ICU and we need the GP out-of-hours as well.

"I need to know that it is there, because I have to use it often."

Stephen added: "Emma wouldn't be here with us right now without the intensive care unit at Inverclyde Royal.

"They have to keep it here."

As a way of saying thanks and to help save others' lives Emma recently organised a charity fundraising campaign.

Together with friends and family she collected over £1,000 for the British Heart Foundation to help fund research.

Emma added: "I couldn't believe how generous everyone was.

"I want to thank everyone who contributed, and all the staff at Inverclyde Royal and the Golden Jubilee for what they've done for me."