National Transplant Week is an annual event organised by the charity Transplants in Mind. This year's week had the tag line "What are you waiting for" relating to all those awaiting transplants whilst the shortage of donors is so great. The poster campaign shows a photograph of Robyn Tainty who was born with cystic fibrosis and is awaiting a heart and lung transplant.
The Donor Bus
The Charity has a London Routemaster bus which can be hired for awareness campaigns and, thanks to help from Councillor David Greenhalgh (who, as well as being a councillor is also one of our patients and dialysed at Bolton Satellite Unit), we arranged a space for the bus in Victoria Square, Bolton on 10 July.
Bus manager Ray Pearson and volunteers, most of whom have themselves received transplants, so well aware of the importance of organ donation in saving lives, along with patients and staff from SRFT were on hand to encourage sign up, offer information and hand out balloons and freebies. Special thanks go to Coronation Street actor Dominic Holmes (Daniel Osbourne in "Street") and his sister Georgina who came along to lend support to us and mum Julie who dialyses at the Bolton Satellite Unit and also to Salford Royal Kidney Patients Association for their support throughout the whole week.
Feedback from the donor bus manager and crew was very positive. They were impressed with the organisation, team working, and drive to encourage organ donation and education. On this day alone 506 people signed up to the Register and there is no way of counting how many were encouraged to consider it.
Media
The Bolton Evening News and Channel M attended a photocall at 10.30am when the lady Mayor of Bolton Councillor Mrs Barbara Ronson joined the gathering and signed up for the donor register. The television station interviewed Jackie Paige (Haemo nurse), Dr Ann Talbot (Clinical Lead for Directly Managed Practices at Bolton PCT) and Councillor David Greenhalgh and aired the items several times throughout the evening on each of their news bulletins as well as adding an information snippet to their "talk" page.
Newsletter
A newsletter was produced and circulated across the renal network to hospital and Primary Care Trusts (PCTs) as well as the Renal Strategy Group and patients. copies were also included in each GP letter and you may have seen one in your local GP surgery! Thanks go to one of our patients, Gavin Stoddard and his mum Sandra, who willingly provided us with the lead story of Gavin's kidney failure and how Sandra donated one of her kidney's after being found to be a perfect match.
Stands in ASDA Stores
Stands were manned by staff and patients in ASDA stores across the network. Locations were Burnden Park, Chadderton, Horwich and Wigan.
Media Reports
Manchester Evening News 07.07.07
Bolton Evening News 12.07.07
Salford Royal NHS Foundation Trust
In addition to activities "outside" the Trust in the Renal Network, this year's awareness campaign also focused internally on the Trust and its employees. Chief Executive David Dalton gave full support and allowed a screensaver to be used on all Trust computers during the week. There was a stand with donor information and freebies (thanks to Howard Thomas, Chair of HHKPA for the time he put in manning the stand) and some staff and patients signed up on the spot whilst others took information away to read.
