By Roy Bates (Member of NITA)

The Gift of Life

My first signs of heart trouble appeared when I was 35 years old in 1977. I had what I was told had been a silent heart attack. I then developed a severe angina problem which was helped by taking medication.

Later, in November 1982, I had another very bad angina attack. I was taken into the Royal Victoria Hospital (RVH) in Belfast in January 1983 where I underwent a treadmill and dye test, ECHO tests under stress and an angiogram. I was told that I needed quadruple bypass surgery immediately or I would be dead in a few months as my heart was only working at 50% capacity.

After my bypass operation I recovered well and had about twelve years painfree and returned to work. I worked in the family’s wholesale fruit and vegetable business. Then I started to get angina pain again. I was put back on more medication which helped some, but gradually I started getting worse and the medication was not helping as much as before. Then on 22nd December 1997 I went into acute heart failure. I was taken into the RVH where after more tests and an angiogram I was told I needed further bypass surgery as my grafts had become blocked again.

My Consultant Cardiologist was very optimistic that the operation could be carried out but after showing my results to three heart surgeons each of them refused to operate because of the risk. One of the surgeons visited me and explained that because of the scar tissue and the extra strain, also the fact that now my heart was only pumping at 11% of its volume, I was too high a risk. I was devastated!!

Thankfully my Cardiologist refused to give up and contacted the Freeman Transplant Unit in Newcastle upon Tyne England who took me in to be assessed for transplant. By this time I was in a wheelchair and very low.

After more intensive tests everything looked as if I was going to be recommended for a transplant and be on the active list which meant I would be transplanted as quickly as possible. Then on the last day of my assessment the head of the transplant team said that because of better facilities and more advanced technology in the Freeman he would attempt my bypass surgery which would give me another 4-5 years before needing transplantation. I was then sent back home to wait for my operation.

A year after my first assessment I got another call on my pager and then a phone call to check that I had no infections or medical problems. I was again taken to the Freeman Hospital via ambulance and private plane where I was again prepared for my operation. At about 11 pm on 13th March 1999 I was given my gift heart. I awoke about two days later and felt great. No pain or anything. I was buzzing and couldn’t wait to start my recovery programme.

Eleven days later I developed severe infection in my chest wound and around my new heart. I was again taken to theatre where I was reopened and an irrigation system inserted into my chest. This consisted of lots of tubes and drains and I was like this for a few days. Then my kidneys stopped working and my lungs filled with fluid. My body swelled up and all my organs were closing down. The nurses later told me that they had been calling me “The Michelin Man”. I was given blood transfusions and many types of drugs then eventually my kidneys began to function again and I lost nearly three stone of fluid from my body. I was starting to feel better when the infection in my chest returned. The doctor who I had come to rely on treated the infection and cleaned the wounds daily until the infection had cleared up.

After that I went with my wife, Barbara, who was always by my side and who nursed me the whole time, to a flat in the hospital grounds where I slowly recovered. I attended a clinic and a gym every day to build myself up. After about three weeks I was allowed to go home.

Three months later the infection in my wound returned. I was taken to the Freeman Hospital where Dr Jagan Rau again opened the top of my chest, cleared out the infection and removed one of the wires which was holding my breastbone together as this was the root of the infection. The following morning I was on my way home again.
Since that I haven’t looked back! I can now walk for miles and enjoy my boating hobby.

I will be on medication for the rest of my life. Some of the drugs have made me diabetic but this is a small price to pay for life.
I can never express my gratitude enough, for the dedication of Mr Dark and the transplant team, also the nursing staff and all the other staff in the Freeman Hospital. I will always be in their debt.

And to

By Jeffrey Whitford, Lisburn (Vice Chair of NITA)

The Gift of Life

In the spring of 1975 I was feeling very unwell. As I was only 24 years old I made an appointment to see my GP and was surprised that I had to go straight to the cardiac unit of the Lagan Valley Hospital in Lisburn. My heart rate was extremely fast, around 200 beats per minute. The medical staff in the hospital stabilised my heart rate. However, they would not treat my illness, so I was referred to the Royal Victoria Hospital in Belfast. There I was finally diagnosed with congestive cardiomyopathy. In my case the muscle tissue in the right side of my heart had thickened so the pumping action did not function properly.

I was constantly tired and any sort of exercise gave me pain at the base of my chest and I became short of breath.
I was a young man, not long married with two small children. At times I despaired of seeing my children grow to adulthood. I left work to become a house-husband in June 1978. This helped my heart a lot but I was still slowly deteriorating. My doctors implanted a pacemaker in the spring of 1980 and this improved the pumping action of my heart and I felt a little better but it was still only buying time and was not a cure

When my cardiologist suggested a transplant I could not fully comprehend all it could mean. This was in the Autumn of 1985. I was sent over to Papworth Hospital in Cambridge, England in December 1985 for assessment and I had a positive answer.

Again I was very fortunate in that I didn’t have long to wait. I received the call on the 14th April 1986 and I received my new heart at 11 pm that night at Papworth Hospital.

The operation was, by their standards, quite straight forward and I progressed fairly well. I had some rejection but that was treated. I stayed in hospital for about 3 weeks and in a flat in Papworth Village for 2 weeks. I was sent home 5 weeks and 1 day after my transplant looking forward to a new happy healthy life with my family. I did have some rejection in the first few months but, again, it was successfully treated and I soon established a new routine for myself.

Since then I have been very fortunate that any of my problems have been resolved. I now live a good fulfilling life. My wife and I celebrated our 27th wedding anniversary last year and our older daughter is married and our younger one is working in her chosen career. Life is good and there is not a day I do not give thanks for my transplant. I am Vice Chairman of The Northern Ireland Transplant Association so I can help those waiting for their operations and share my experiences with others in the same situation. i am now a proud Grandfather since 2004.

Please carry the donor card and sign the organ donor register on Freephone 0800 606040

By Michael Guinness, Castlewellan (Member of NITA)

The Gift of Life

In 1990 I had a pacemaker fitted. It helped for a time, but by the autumn of 1994 I became ill. After numerous medical investigations it became evident that I needed a heart transplant.

This was a great shock to me and it took me some time to come to terms with the fact that this was the only way to prolong my life. After three months treatment in the Belfast City Hospital I was sent to the Freeman Hospital for assessment. I was put on the waiting list and we were given a “bleep” to carry. I remained in the City Hospital until February 1995 when I was discharged. I had improved sufficiently to allow me to live at home. By this time I was 62 years old.

I was called in June and August 1995 to the Freeman Hospital but the donor organs on each occasion were found to be unsuitable. I was called again on 20th October 1995. My wife and daughter accompanied me and I was transplanted in the early hours of the 21st

It was a very traumatic experience not only for me but for my wife and family. We were also aware of the suffering of the donor family. Thank God I have had a good quality of life since. I am always careful about my medication.

I have since become a member of the Northern Ireland Transplant Association so I can help others going through a similar situation. Please carry the card and sign the organ donor register

By John McFarland, Glengormley (Member of NITA)

The Gift of Life

I was a busy Instrument Technician dashing here and there through the whole of Ireland, Isle of Man and parts of Scotland. I didn’t have time to be sick!

Suddenly, on 17th November 1989, while working in Galway I had a heart attack! In the hotel my heart stopped…………………
A cardiac arrest!!

Severe chest pains 3 years earlier had been a warning. I was checked out in hospital at that time, nothing serious found, went home and worried no more about it.

After the Galway episode I had tests which showed scars from a previous heart attack and I had a triple by-pass in April 1991.