The aim of this year’s Transplant Week campaign was to get people to ‘spell out’ their donation decision to increase awareness that families will be asked to agree to organ donation and to encourage more people to join the NHS Organ Donor Register.
Tom said, “Letting your loved ones know you want to be an organ donor is so important. I have let mine know. It is devastating for families when someone they love passes away and it’s not fair or right to expect your family to have to make a decision under all sorts of pressure to donate your organs – by making them aware you could save them from a great deal of extra stress and heartache before you die.
We never know what tomorrow will bring, but I hope that even when I am no longer here, the last deed that I do is to be able to help someone who needs it.”
Sally Johnson, NHS Blood and Transplant’s Director of Organ Donation and Transplantation, added, “We know that families are much less likely to allow organ donation to go ahead if they don’t know it’s what their loved one wanted. So have the conversation and spell it out.”
To register your organ donation decision go to www.transplantweek.co.uk. Follow NHS Blood and Transplant on twitter @NHSOrganDonor and Facebook www.facebook.com/organdonationuk and remember to #spellitout.
The British Kidney Patient Association supports kidney patients; to find out more please visit www.britishkidney-pa.co.uk or follow them on twitter @The_BKPA.