Surrey heart transplant recipient: "What greater gift, than the gift of life?"

As many of us will be spending Christmas with families, a Surrey heart-transplant recipient says this can be the perfect time to have a conversation about organ donation

Although the law around organ donation has changed to an opt out system in many parts of the UK, your family will still be consulted if organ donation is a possibility meaning that if they don't know what you want, they could deny you the chance to be an organ donor

Dave Webb from Walton-on-Thames had his life saved through a heart transplant in 2018 along with his brother as they were both suffering from the same heart condition.

He told us about how Christmas can be the perfect time to 'make your wishes known'

"It's a time of year when families get together and yes, probably not the the the top topic of conversation, but what a perfect opportunity to just have that conversation and make your wishes known."

He also adds the sentimental nature of the holiday can also be a good reason to bring what can be a tricky topic to conversation

"It's also quite a sentimental time of year, but what greater gift than the gift of life and just having that simple conversation, allowing someone to understand what you want could have a long lasting legacy."

According to NHS Organ donation, each year hundreds of opportunities for organ donation due to family members being unsure as to what to do.

As only 1% of people die in a way which allows organ donation, these can be seen as huge opportunities that are missed

Dave says the process to register is very simple and only two steps

"It's quite a simple process. You just have to go online, register your decision. That's that's one part of it. But the one thing some people don't understand is it's actually sharing your wishes as well with your loved ones so they are aware.

Because they ultimately do hold the key should the time come."

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