Osa Andre Fundraising for Kidney Disease and Transplant Care
Donation protected
My Kidney Journey
Hello, my name is Osa André and I am fundraising for the Nephrology Department at the University Hospital Lewisham, the kidney clinics at Guy's and St Thomas's Hospital, and The Churchill and John Radcliffe Hospital, which are a part of the Oxford University Hospital Trust in the United Kingdom.
Over the years, they have managed my care brilliantly.
Here is a synopsis of the story;
In the early, very wee hours of Saturday 27th April 2024, I got the call, well, (after several attempts) that they had a match. Hey, presto! It is my kidney transplant.
Oh my gosh!!!! It is actually happening.
By 7pm-ish, I was being prepped and given anaesthetics, and by 11:30pm-ish, I had a donor kidney. I came back around from anaesthetics about 2:30am-ish early Sunday morning.
It was the best belated birthday present I could ever have gotten, wished for. Or even have dreamt of.
I have named my new kidney, LucKid.
Why, I hear you ask. Well, it seemed out of the blue, but I had been a kidney failure patient for over twelve (12) years. I have been on the transplant list, although I was activated, deactivated, and reactivated at various times for various reasons.
This is good news for me. The alternative would have been dire. I am holding on and celebrating a new lease of life.
From the day my GP (doctor), in Forest Hill, diagnosed me all the way through the specialist nephrology and renal consultations, at the University Hospital Lewisham in London, Guy's and St. Thomas's Hospital in London, and The Churchill Hospital where my transplant surgery was carried out, my entire medical and clinician teams have been nothing short of brilliant and excellent.
Huge thanks go to the transplant teams; the surgical, the anaesthetist, the radiologist, the nursing, the carers, clinicians, the pharmacist, health and social care, dietitian, infectious diseases, and more. The scale is nothing short of amazing!
On June 5th, 2024, I had a follow-up procedure to finalise the transplant surgery process. It is now full recovery and healing time.
We very seldom process what goes into an operation like a transplant surgery. There is a hive of activities behind the scenes for each patient. What the patient sees is a miniscule fraction of the care they get.
The next challenge is the immediate after care. The continuous on-going care. The social and financial implications and what the future would look like. But that is for later.
What is imminent, however, is my recovery. I am glad to say that that aspect is well underway.
I am now back home after a successful transplant surgery.
A big thank you to my family and friends for the post surgery support they have been giving me. The good wishes, visits, calls, financial support, deliveries of provisions, preparation of meals, words of encouragement, and much more.
Thank you.
Osa André O.O.
Co-organizers (2)
ENZO HarlowQuinns
Organizer
Bloomington, IL
ANDRE OMO-OSAGIE
Co-organizer