Janet - transplant champion (From Leigh Journal)

Janet - transplant champion

10:41am Wednesday 3rd February 2010 in

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A TRIPLE liver swap survivor is playing a major role in trying to increase the number of life saving organ donations.

It is almost 20 years since Janet Atherton underwent two transplants in a week after suffering acute liver failure. A third followed six years later in 1995 after her body started to experience rejection.

Since then Janet, 46, of Tennyson Avenue, Leigh, who was treated at St James’ Hospital, Leeds, has been well and worked tirelessly to help patients and their families in similar situations.

She is now playing a major role in the launch this week of a unique programme to support a UK-wide network of hospital organ donation “champions”.

The programme is designed for the growing number of clinical leads (intensive care consultants) for organ donation and the donation committee leaders who work along side them and help increase donation rates by 50% over a five-year period.

Janet, who is chair of the Leeds Organ Donation Task force, said: “This is a Department of Health scheme and I was thrilled to be asked onto the committee let alone chair of it. Leigh MP and health minister Andy Burnham has been particularly supportive.”

The twelve month project will involve face to face workshops, self-study and regional events aimed at building leadership and change management skills, and to advance clinical expertise and capability.

Guest speaker at the inaugural event earlier this week was organ donation campaigner, Reg Green, whose seven year old son Nicholas's organs and corneas were donated after he was shot during an armed robbery while on a family holiday in Italy in 1994. The decision, by Reg and his wife, Maggie, saved the lives of five Italians, four of them teenagers, and restored the sight of two others.

Janet said: “It's vital that hospital staff recognise the importance of offering donation. Every day three people on the waiting list die, because of the shortage of donated organs.”

With 10,000 people in the UK in need of an organ transplant, this programme is a vital part of the ongoing plans to help to improve deceased donation rates and provide more lifesaving transplants.