James Hanlon

Clongowes 1917-1922 I James Hanlon

James Hanlon (1908-1961), a physician who was blind and deaf, was a native of Dublin, who attended Clongowes in 1917-22. Qualifying as a doctor, he completed postgraduate studies in Vienna, and became a leading ear, nose and throat surgeon in Dublin. At the age of forty-two he developed a freak ocular infection that left him blind and eventually deaf. A trip to Lourdes did not cure him physically, but seems to have restored his self-belief. Thereafter his constant cheerfulness, zest for life and determination to overcome the limitations of his disability were quite remarkable. In 1952 he took a course in physiotherapy in London, attending lectures in the company of a secretary who interpreted the classes for him on the palms of his hands, a process of communication for deaf-blind people known as tactile signing. He was the first deaf-blind person ever to complete such a programme. Returning to Dublin, he soon established a successful physiotherapy practice and became renowned for treating polio victims, who were often left with severe muscle and joint discomfort and impaired mobility. He also became adept at diagnosing early signs of the disease. He was employed at the Richmond Hospital as a consultant physiotherapist and took consultancy rooms on Fitzwilliam Square. Despite his disability, he continued to play golf and to swim, sometimes diving with the Irish champion Eddie Heron at Blackrock Baths in Dublin. He had a prodigious memory. After his story was featured on the BBC, he travelled to the USA to raise funds for a new central remedial clinic in Dublin. He appeared on the Ed Sullivan Show and met the famous deaf-blind author and activist Helen Keller. He returned to Lourdes each year, dying there in 1961. French television described him as a man of great courage and as a ‘hero for all’. His career is especially inspiring for those who are disabled.