Cara and Amy at transplant games dinner

Her younger sister Amy has been close to Cara through all her highs and lows.  Amy began an undergraduate course in Physics at Southampton University in September 2011 and has carried her passion for the cause of organ donation onto the campus by forming a society called SUODA – Southampton University Organ Donation Awareness

SUODA is made up of a few committed members. They have held awareness days on campus including a bake sale and a stall. At their first event, members signed up 15 people to the register. They recently collaborated with Southampton Hub to do an online photo campaign. Students around the university were asked to write on a whiteboard their reasons for believing in the benefits of organ donation. They could tag and share their photos on Facebook and were entered into a prize draw. Each photo had a link to a specially commissioned website so that the number of people signing on to the register could be counted.  As a result, 193 new people signed on. The society has plans to keep getting more people signed up and to educate the student population on why joining the register is so important.

Interviewed as President of SUODA for a local paper, Wessex Scene, Amy spoke of the society’s story so far and its plans for the future. “Organ donation is not something that I gave a lot of thought to until a few years ago when my sister suffered liver failure. She was 18. She was taken by air ambulance from Belfast to King’s College Hospital in London and put to the top of waiting list for transplant. She was fortunate enough to undergo a successful liver transplant after a three-day wait. Unfortunately, there are people suffering for years with chronic illnesses, waiting for transplants because there is such a shortage of available organs”.

“It wasn’t until a friend at St Andrew’s told me she had joined an Organ Donation Society at the university that I thought I could do something to promote organ donation. I contacted the society president and asked what sort of things they did. It was a new idea being funded and tested by NHS Blood and Transplant in Scotland, to raise awareness amongst students. There isn’t a lot of funding available but I thought I could start one here at Southampton because all we really need are interested people, a room to meet and some decent ideas!

SUODA is for anyone and everyone, even those already on the register.  Medical students and students of any of the allied health professions may find the society interesting and relevant but no matter what your course, we hope that membership will be worthwhile.”

Erica at home with Kirsten and Gary

allowed her to live but to every other person who has signed up to the organ donor register. My mum is now chair of the Northern Ireland Transplant Association (NITA) and campaigns endlessly promoting organ donation and the gift of life all over Northern Ireland. I am so incredibly proud of her and thankful that she is still here to be my mum and an amazing advocate for organ donation.

Seeing my mum do such great work through NITA, inspired me to join the committee as assistant secretary. I enjoy the fact that I can help make a small difference in organ donation. I love attending Freshers Days’, talking to other people my age and encouraging them to sign up to the organ donor register.  I hope to continue this and get as many people on the ODR as possible.

I would just like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who supports organ donation.  It truly is the best gift you could ever give. If you are not an organ donor please discuss your thoughts and wishes with your family; it is vital that they know how you feel as you have the opportunity to give someone a second chance of life.

Kirsten Ferguson

Presentation of cheque to Eileen Hearst

When I knew Philip needed a transplant I decided to run the Dublin Marathon at the end of October to raise money for the RVH Liver Support Group. Between my family and myself we raised £1000. We decided to give the Liver Support Group £800 and the other £200 to Listen Lodge funds.

Just over a week later at 7.30pm on 6th November Philip was taken from the Royal Victoria Hospital by ambulance to Belfast International Airport to be transferred to King’s College Hospital. On the journey by air ambulance he was accompanied by a member of RVH staff. He was flown to Biggin Hill Airport where an ambulance took him to King’s.

Philip had asked me to follow him over as soon as possible. I rang King’s Liver Coordinator , Ami. Ami told me to ring at 6 a.m. the next morning to find out if the liver was suitable. When I rang,  Ami informed me that the liver was unsuitable but there was a second liver and they were almost certain that it was suitable but to ring after 8 a.m. So the next thing Philip rang to say he was going to have the operation. I booked the first available flight to Stansted which arrived in London at 2 p.m.. From there I travelled to King’s by train. When I arrived Philip was still in the theatre. I waited around and then Ami came to tell me there was a slight complication with the bile duct which had to be reconstructed but the liver was functioning.

The operation lasted about 8 hours but was successful. Philip was moved to HDU where he was sedated with round the clock care. I was allowed to see him for a short time around 9 p.m.. I was told that if he was alright they would try to bring him around in the morning and to come back at 9 a.m.

When I arrived to see Philip he had lots of wires and tubes coming from him to monitor his progress. He was feeling drowsy and out of sorts. He remained in the unit for 36 hours until he was taken to Todd Ward. While there they changed his medication because he was very confused and not totally aware of what was happening.

During this time he was being accompanied to the toilet when he slipped and fell, breaking his leg in four places. He had to be put in plaster to above the knee. This left him bed bound until he was discharged on the 26th November. Sister Moffett from the RVH came over to accompany Philip on the air ambulance. I was allowed to fly back with them to Aldergrove where an ambulance took us to the Royal. While there he received physio to help him to get on his feet again. He was finally discharged on 6th January 2013. By this time his medication was working and his bouts of confusion had gone. He had come a long way from when I first saw him after the operation and still could not remember much about his time in King’s.

Since then Philip has had to have a drain inserted to remove the bile. It was removed after 6 weeks. Philip would like to say the care and attention he received while in King’s and the RVH was excellent and has made a remarkable change to his health and well being.

He would like to say how grateful he is to the liver donor and their family.

Submitted by Alastair, Philip’s nephew