Emirati who spent her life in hospital realises dream of studying art at university

Yusra Al Hattali was born with a motor neurone disease but her life has improved dramatically since moving to a care facility in Khalifa City A.

Yusra Al Hattali, who was born with a motor neuron disease that led to chronic respiratory failure, has begun an English-language course at Zayed University to prepare for a four-year Bachelor of ArtsShow more

ABU DHABI // Yusra Al Hattali sits up in her pink bed and concentrates on her homework.

For most university students it would be no more than a chore. For this courageous and determined young woman, it is another step towards achieving her dream.

Yusra, a 26-year-old Emirati, was born with a motor neuron disease that led to chronic respiratory failure. She has spent her entire life in hospital, is reliant on a ventilator to breathe, and only two years ago she was being looked after in an intensive-care unit with no access to the outside world.

This month, however, Yusra began an English-language course at Zayed University, to prepare for a four-year Bachelor of Arts degree course in art at the university. Far from being isolated in a hospital room, for five days a week she spends seven hours a day learning and socialising with other students at the university.

“I am living my dream,” she says.

Yusra’s condition severely limits her mobility and she is unable to speak, although she can communicate by writing on her laptop. It is through her art, however, that she most effectively conveys her thoughts and emotions.

“I paint many things but I like to paint faces,” she says. “When I am painting, I feel I can say what is inside me by painting and mixing colours.”

Yusra’s life changed two years ago, when she moved from hospital intensive care to ProVita, which provides long-term care for patients reliant on ventilators.

She expressed an interest in art, and staff at the ProVita centre in Khalifa City A in Abu Dhabi brought in art tutors to allow her talent to flourish. She has now completed 70 paintings.

Yusra's breakthrough came when she wrote to Sheikh Saif bin Zayed, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior, to tell him about her passion for art.

Sheikh Saif not only visited her at ProVita, but arranged for a permanent display of her work to be exhibited at the Armed Forces Officers Club in Abu Dhabi.

A university lecturer who visited the exhibition suggested to Yusra that she take her passion further, so she began exploring the feasibility of obtaining an art degree. With the help of staff at the centre, she was able to enrol at Zayed University.

Two nurses accompany Yusra to the university every day. “I thought it would be difficult for me but they all supported me and helped me to get my dream,” she says.

In the care centre, with her pink-covered iPad and her phone, Yusra, like any other student her age, keeps in contact with her friends through social media such as Facebook and Twitter.

Despite the limitations of her hospital environment, staff at the centre say Yusra has always been determined to fulfil her goals, and she says her quality of life has improved since she moved there.

“I feel like I am home,” she says. “I feel like I have a normal life. I can choose the things I want to do, and I want to do more and more.”

A selection of Yusra's work will also be displayed at ProVita's new site in Al Foah district in Al Ain in November.

It will lend a splash of colour to the unit which, like the Abu Dhabi centre, cares mainly for children, some born with degenerative disorders such as multiple sclerosis, some with congenital diseases and some who have been victims of accidents such as car crashes and will never fully recover.

Yusra ultimately hopes to see her work exhibited worldwide and one day open her own art gallery. For now, though, she is happy to be doing her homework.

“It is good to do something I never felt I would do,” she said. “I want to finish my degree.”

Andrew Escamilla, the chief executive of ProVita, describes Yusra as a “truly inspirational young woman”.

“She has made huge progress in the time she has been at ProVita and it is fantastic to see her realise her dreams,” he said.

“For Yusra, the most important thing is to be able to choose how she wants to live her life and to have the freedom to be able to do the things she loves. These things are fundamental to enhancing a person’s quality of life and that is a commitment we make to all of our patients.”