Why we should Tell A Loved One we want to be an organ donor

May 13 2008 by Madeleine Brindley, South Wales Echo

WALES rugby sensation James Hook will urge people to sign up to the organ donor register in the first campaign of its kind.

He and other Welsh celebrities, including actress Connie Fisher and former Stereophonics drummer Stuart Cable, will star in a series of adverts for the Donate Wales – Tell A Loved One.

It is hoped the six-month drive will help address the dire shortage of organs for transplant across the UK.

It comes as more than 150 people in Wales have died in the last five years while they were on the transplant waiting list. This will be the first organ donation campaign which is unique to Wales and will bring together nine major charities and is funded by the Welsh Assembly Government.

Health Minister Edwina Hart said: “Discussing what happens to us and our organs after we die are things most people don’t really want to think about but it is important for people to discuss the possibility with family members.

“If they are aware of their loved one’s wishes, family members can find it comforting to know that some good has come from their bereavement.”

About 470 people in Wales are currently waiting for an organ transplant, but with a desperate shortage of donors many face waiting years.

More than 780,000 people in Wales have joined the NHS Organ Donor Register but although the numbers are impressive, three out of four people have not joined.

And even though someone may have joined the register, they may not have spoken to their family about their wishes.

A person’s family makes the ultimate decision about whether organs can be donated after death.

Gaynor Taylor, who lives in Barry and whose son Richard and husband John both donated their organs when they died, said: “Knowing that Richard and John helped transform so many people’s lives gave me so much comfort at such a difficult time.

“When Richard died, both John and I never knew he had joined the organ donor register, but inside we knew it was something he would have wanted.

“Many families, though, don’t know what their loves one’s wishes would be, which is why talking about them with your family and friends is so important.”

The Donate Wales – Tell A Loved One campaign, which is launched today, will encourage people to talk about what they want to happen after their death, as well as recruit more people to join the organ donor register.

Roy J Thomas, executive chairman of the Kidney Wales Foundation, which is leading the campaign, said: “If we are to bridge the gap between the number of people waiting for organs and the number of organs available, we need to start talking to our loved ones about our wishes to become organ donors when we die and make sure we all join the organ donor register.”

For more information about the campaign, visit www.donatewales.org or to join the NHS Organ Donor Register call 0845 60 60 400.

Transplant was real gift of life for Kian

KIAN EVANS was just nine months old when he had a liver transplant after developing a rare childhood disease.

An earlier operation to give him some more time had failed and parents Suzanne Ashton and Gavin Evans were beginning to wonder whether their son would survive.

But after five weeks on the transplant list, Kian received a new liver, donated by a 23-year-old man who had died – another portion of that liver was transplanted into another patient.

Suzanne, a team manger at Boots, who lives in Pontypridd, said: “It was a big decision to have Kian. We were thrilled when I was pregnant, we were so thrilled when he was born and then this happened.

“He could only be fed through a tube, he couldn’t breathe very well – we were really getting to the critical stage.

“When he was put on the list we had a bit of hope knowing that something could be done for Kian but we didn’t know how long he would be on that list or even if he would get a new liver. It was a very scary time.”

Within weeks of the transplant Kian, who is now 18 months old, began to improve – he was able to drink milk and to sit up and breathe properly.

Suzanne, 46, said: “He was like a different baby – there was a tremendous difference more or less straight away.

“At the moment Kian is really well but there could come a time in his life when he may need another liver transplant.

“I would urge everyone to become a donor – we weren’t before but now the whole family has signed up.

“Kian has gone through a tremendous ordeal in his short life but he is still with us. I will never be able to thank the donor family enough for what they have done.”