Robert viewing surgery calmly

Today the devoted father and daughter were due to undergo surgery, with Iilona giving her father the ultimate gift - the chance of 15 years of life not tied to a kidney dialysis machine.

For some the prospect of transplant surgery is a fear-filled ‘unknown entity’ but for those, like Robert, who have spent years on a transplant list waiting for an organ from someone forward thinking and brave enough to carry a donor card, transplant surgery is a lifeline that almost cannot be quantified. It is, quite simply, the chance of life: No illness. No whirring machines; life lived comparatively freely.

The final hurdle was reached last week when Iilona and her dad did another blood matching test on Thursday. Having heard nothing back from the hospital in Belfast, it appears it is a case of all systems go.

Speaking to The Sentinel on Monday, Robert said: “Iilona is feeling a little nervous especially leaving the children but is receiving wonderful support from her friends, family and her mother. If everything goes according to plan Iilona may well be released by Friday evening, while I expect to be there for 10 to 14 days according to how the kidney takes to its new surroundings.

“Myself, I have no concerns or doubts or worries whatsoever. Being at such ease I am completely at peace and believe that everything will go well and without unpleasant complications. Yes, it has been a long wait, but at last the time has come and both of us just want it over and done with and look forward to a complete recovery,” Robert says with conviction.

Dedicated to changing the law on opting in to donor status, to the onus being on people to ‘opt out’, and looking to the future, Robert noted: “You might have noticed on the news recently that now Wales has complete control over it’s own decision making affairs that it is looking at becoming the first part of the UK to introduce opt out rather than opt in for donor organs. So progress is on the way.”

Anyone who wants to know more about organ donation and dialysis should take advantage of World Kidney Day tomorrow, Thursday (March 10), when there will be an all-day display at both Foyleside Shopping Centre and Altnagelvin Hospital, at the main entrance.

The Altnagelvin Renal Unit was officially opened on January 30, 2006 by Mr Shaun Woodward, the then Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety. Prior to the opening of this new facility, all renal patients had to travel to either Belfast or Omagh for treatment. The current unit’s maximum capacity is 16 patients twice every day except Sunday. This entails both a morning and afternoon session of four hours for most patients. At present Dr P Garrett from Omagh is in overall control while Dr Y Kuan runs the unit. The renal facility provides 16 Haemodialysis machines with room for an additional four.