Well October 24th is the day for the donation, so
I am in the final stages of preparation.
Today I spent the morning at Toronto General Hospital; that’s where my
kidney is headed to be transplanted. I
had to go there for the final work-up for the donation. First I went to the
blood lab to have my final blood tests, to make sure I am healthy and to double
check that I am a match with the recipient.
I was a bit surprised as the nurse kept taking more and more tubes off
the shelf as she got ready to take my blood.
I saw 12 vials, which was a lot of vials I thought, and then she grabbed
five more just for good measure I guess. Seventeen vials, that’s the most blood I’ve
ever had taken. But she was good at her
job and it was over in a few minutes and it didn’t hurt a bit.
Next I went up to the doctor who will be taking my kidney out
of a box and putting it in someone else’s body.
I am so filled with curiosity about the person who will get my kidney;
I know I won’t ever meet them. But this
man links us. He will see both me and
them. In a very personal way!
The doctor told me that Health Canada requires that the
person putting an organ in someone else’s body has to meet the donor and sign
off that they are healthy and are in good condition to donate. So they can’t rely on the word of another
doctor to do that. He said that the
regulations were done in a time when organs weren’t capable of being flown
across the country, and that gradually these regulations may change.
It was a cordial visit.
I asked him about the other people in the chain of donations, but he
said he didn’t know anything about that, he was asked to do this part of the
chain and he does it, he is not the mastermind behind the whole process.
Once again, I was asked a series of questions about my
health, my sexual partners and my family history. I can recite this in my sleep
by now! I am glad I got to meet the
person who is such an important part of the team making this donation happen.