Vicky Phelan was an Irish healthcare campaigner and mother of two. She became a household name in Ireland after her court action against the HSE in 2018, which broke the CervicalCheck cancer scandal, where 221 known sufferers, including herself, were not told of a clinical audit that had revised earlier test results: their cancers could possibly have been prevented. In the years to follow, she was involved in powerful public advocacy, to ensure that standards and accountability were brought to bear within the Irish health service so that what happened to her and others could not happen again. Overcoming: A Memoir won the An Post Book of the Year Award in 2019. Vicky passed away in November 2022 at the age of forty-eight.
Calls to mind the work of Emilie Pine, or the memoir by Maggie O'Farrell, I Am, I Am, I Am ... Overcoming is more than the retelling of an extraordinary life. Its pacing and gentleness leaves plenty of room for tears and for reflection - Irish Independent Powerful ... compelling - Image Refreshingly honest ... Overcoming gives an incisive account of one of the country's biggest healthcare scandals from the perspective of a woman who refused to be silenced, took on the system, uncovered that scandal, and did women in this State a huge service. It also offers an insight into the strength of character, resilience, determination and courage of a woman who has been faced with and has overcome many other major challenges in her life - Irish Examiner *Memoir of the Year 2019* Overcoming clips along with the lithe and engaging pace of a chat with a close friend, and has the drama of a domestic page-turner. Phelan has written her name into history as an activist for Irish women - Sunday Times