A beautiful story of solidarity from Ogliastra . The protagonist is an 83-year-old woman who was recently admitted to Nostra Signora della Mercede Hospital in Lanusei in critical condition. After brain death was confirmed, her liver and kidneys were removed : the patient had given her consent to donation while she was alive. And so, from death, hope for three lives was born : thanks to the woman's compassion and altruism, her liver and one kidney will be donated to two Sardinian patients awaiting transplants at Brotzu Hospital, while the second kidney will be donated outside the region.
THE COLLECTION – The woman was admitted to the Intensive Care Unit of Nostra Signora della Mercede a few days ago in very serious condition. Her clinical condition subsequently worsened, culminating in brain death, which was confirmed by a commission composed of Dr. Luigi Ferrai, director of the Lanusei Hospital, Dr. Francesco Loddo, director of the Anesthesia and Intensive Care Unit at Nostra Signora della Mercede, and Dr. Silvia Barca, a neurologist in the Medicine Department of the Ogliastra hospital.
The liver was then harvested by a surgical team from Brotzu Hospital in Cagliari , led by Dr. Fausto Zamboni of the Liver Transplant Center. A second team of surgeons, also from Brotzu , the Urology and Kidney Transplant team, led by Dr. Andrea Solinas , was called upon to harvest the kidneys. The Cagliari team was assisted in this delicate operation by a multidisciplinary team from Lanusei Hospital , composed of surgeon Dr. Giovanni Pietro Paolo Gusai and a team of anesthetists, scrub nurses, and anesthesiologists. This was a significant team effort, resulting in the success of both procedures, which would not have been possible without the perfect coordination of the various hospital services and facilities, from the Intensive Care Unit, where the patient was hospitalized, to the essential support of Radiology, the Analysis Laboratory, and the Transfusion Center.
"This extraordinary gesture of solidarity demonstrates that, despite the prevailing ageism, even an elderly person in good clinical condition can make a vital contribution to society through organ donation ," emphasizes Andrea Fabbo , general director of the Ogliastra Local Health Authority. "Geriatrics doesn't look at age, but at function."
"This story reminds us once again of the importance of expressing one's willingness to donate ," emphasizes Dr. Francesco Loddo , "a gesture that can also be made on easily accessible occasions, such as renewing one's identity card. This woman's example," concludes the physician, "also demonstrates the great social value of donation, which can translate into an opportunity for treatment and rebirth for many patients."
(Unioneonline)
