I started the letter many times. It brought me to tears, which irritated my eye, the one with tiny stitches embroidering a new cornea in place.
I received a donor cornea and was given the opportunity to write anonymously to the donor’s family. I was grateful, as I would be able to honour the donor and their family’s commitment to follow through with their wishes.Tanya Lake
I began, “I might not get the words right, but I am hoping that in this period of immense sadness that you, the donor family, can draw strength, comfort and hope from the selfless act of organ donation.”In the months before my surgery, I often thought about my future donor. My specialist had given me a surgery date three months in advance, based on the expected supply of donor corneas.
Recently, I’ve been reflecting on my good fortune to receive a transplant. Early in my primary schooling I struggled to see the blackboard. I was initially prescribed glasses, but because of the nature of keratoconus better correction is achieved by hard contact lenses. While many people support the idea of organ and tissue donation, only one in three Australians are registered as organ donors. In this country, you are required to opt in on the Organ Donor Register, but the deceased’s family will still be asked to agree. Hence, the need for end-of-life conversations before it’s too late.
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