INSIDE DOUGLAS COLLEGE / August 20, 1991

 

 

Inside Information

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Evelyn Terada
accepts a plaque on
behalf of Community
Programs and
Services and Douglas
College, from Col.
William McKinney of
the Fraser River
Discovery Centre.
The presentation was
in appreciation of the
excellent work by
Adrienne Chan,
Terada and all CP&S
staff involved in
organizing a recent
Ecomuseum
conference.

 

 

Organ donors needed

(continued from page 1)

to make a donation; the final consent

for a transplant must be signed by the
closest family members — and that can
understandably be very difficult.

“When we are dealing with families it
is always a traumatized situation, a sud-
den accident involving a head injury. It
is very hard for family members to think
clearly and to make a decision to sign at
a time like that,” said Halliday. “It is
very important to take five minutes
out and discuss this with your family,
to tell them you want to be an organ
donor.”

Halliday also said the need for
donors is great and urged everyone to
carry donor cards. Ironically, the suc-
cess of recent anti-drinking and driving
campaigns in reducing the number of
accidents has caused a decline in donor
availability.

The search for Michael Gibbon’s
new heart began in April 1990 after doc-
tors discovered seriously deteriorated
heart muscles following by-pass surgery
and gave the 43-year-old accountant
one year to live. Two months of medi-

cal and psychological tests followed
before he was accepted onto the provin-
cial waiting list for donor hearts. He was
12th. The family was told the seach
might take “anything from two days to
two years.”

There were false alarms with the sig-
nal beeper and Gibbons was forced
onto a portable life-support system at
home. Then, last November, a new
heart was found — only to be deemed
medically unacceptable.

“That was devastating for our family,”
said Ladbrook-Gibbons, “to be so
close after all that time and then to
miss out.”

The waiting continued for almost
another three months before the good
news, and successful surgery, finally
came. Except for the approximate age
of the donor — a young adult — the iden-
tity of the donor was kept a secret, a
policy to prevent possibly painful emo-
tional contacts between the families. A
sincere letter of thanks, forwarded by
the agency, was the only communica-
tion allowed.

Visiting her husband after surgery,
Ladbrook-Gibbons immediately saw
renewed life pumping through his body.

“The most significant thing after the
surgery was that | could see his feet
were pink and warm. That doesn’t
sound like much, but he had cold, blue
feet before and we had to keep him
wrapped in electric blankets or bring
him buckets of hot water. But now his
feet were pink. You could see the trans-
formation immediately.”

Other signs followed almost as
immediately.

“By day two of post-op he was stand-
ing and could walk to see me when |!
visited him; by day seven he was exercis-
ing on a treadmill,” recalled
Ladbrook-Gibbons.

“On day 11 we had our first date in
more than one year. We went to the
Teahouse Restaurant in Stanley Park
and walked around the seawall. It was a
gorgeous day.”

For more information about the B.C.
Transplant Society, or to obtain a donor
card, call 877-2100. @