Happy Organ Donor Week from our medical marvels!
The NHS is currently celebrating Organ Donor Week 2023. This week-long campaign takes place every year, raising awareness about the ongoing need for organ donors.
At present, there are more than 4500 people on the NHS waiting list for a kidney transplant, yet most people only need one functioning kidney to live a full and happy life. With a 90-95% success rate for transplants from living donors, #ODW2023 has teamed up with Give a Kidney to break the stigma.
So, what is the Transplant Tour?
To celebrate this year, Fundraising Tours organised The Transplant Tour. Raising money for Give a Kidney, a majority of the riders are transplant surgeons from all across the country, aiming to cover 500 miles in six days! Along the way, they’re stopping at seven different transplant centres.
Having already completed Edinburgh and Newcastle, the riders battled wet and windy conditions to arrive at Thackray Museum for their Leeds stop yesterday evening. Hopefully this hug from Walter the Dog warmed them up a bit!
The riders still have Sheffield, Manchester, Birmingham and Oxford left, so we hope they get another warm welcome and maybe some warmer weather too! Big thank you to Joanne James, Live Donor Renal Transplant coordinator, and the rest of her team at St James Hospital, for including us in this brilliant event.
For more advice about transplants or information about how you can get involved in #ODW2023, visit the NHS’ official organ donations page: https://www.organdonation.nhs.uk/