How Royal Melbourne Hospital doctors gave five Victorians a second shot at life
A REMARKABLE surgeon has given five people a new shot at life, with a marathon of transplant operations performed back-to-back over 36 hours at the Royal Melbourne Hospital.
VIC News
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A REMARKABLE surgeon has given five Victorians a new shot at life, with a marathon of transplant operations performed back-to-back at the Royal Melbourne Hospital.
Director of nephrology surgery Amanda Robertson and her team worked across 36 hours from start to finish to complete all five transplants, elated at the chance to transform their patients’ lives.
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“You are against the clock, you need to get them into the recipients as quickly as you can,’’ she said.
“That is why we do it overnight, not wait until the next morning, so that everything is in and plumbed in.
“You get on a bit of a buzz and just get on and do it.
“They are good operations to do and you know it will be a good outcome for the people involved.”
The first hint of the lifesaving weekend came when a deceased donor’s kidney became available at 10am on a Saturday.
It was matched to Editha Mousley, 65, who was busy at work when she got the call.
As she had the common blood type O-negative, Ms Mousley was one of the easiest patients to match with an organ.
But she had already endured a false start a fortnight earlier when called in for surgery only for doctors to discover the donor kidney had cancer and could not be used.
“I was on dialysis for 19 months then I got a phone call to come in for a transplant, and it has changed my life,” she said.
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Three hours later, as Ms Mousley was making her way to the hospital, another deceased donor’s kidney became available and was matched to a patient from interstate.
Then, just another half an hour later as that patient was being flown in, word came through of a third kidney. At 6pm, a fourth donor became available.
Ms Robertson and her colleagues had already begun their surgery marathon when at 2am Monday a fifth kidney was donated to save the life of Sarah Stevens.
The generosity of the donor families and the knowledge of positive outcomes for the patients had helped her through the gruelling surgery schedule, Ms Robertson said.
She added: “It is extremely rewarding. These patients are incredibly grateful for the gift they have been given.
“They understand that someone has had to die to give their organs and they are all very appreciative of that.
“They often become quite emotional because this is something that is going to change their life dramatically, and someone has died to undergo that and their family has given consent.”
Michael Newman, 66, did not allow himself to get excited when he was summoned to the hospital.
He had received the same phone call three times over the previous three months but, after rushing from his Rockbank home to the Parkville hospital, complications meant the transplants could not occur.
“The chances of me getting those transplants was like winning Tattslotto twice,” he said.
“I was shocked because we all knew my chances of another one coming up within three months to a year were slim.
“But I knew it was going to happen once I was in the prep room, I just had that feeling, ‘It will happen this time’. I wasn’t nervous, it was just, ‘Here I am, ready to go, next cab off the rank’.”
“I feel like a new man again. I had been on dialysis for three and a half years. The donor to me is special.
“The hospital here is excellent.”
By the time Mr Newman’s operation was completed, the interstate recipient matched to the second kidney had arrived and was prepared for surgery, entering the theatre at 4.30am for the third straight transplant.
When they were wheeled into recovery, Ms Robertson went home for a well-deserved breakfast with her young family.
But, before she could think about getting some sleep, the second wave of transplant recipients was arriving.
She grabbed a few hours of sleep between the fourth and fifth operations, on 43-year-old Ms Stevens.
Born with hereditary kidney disease, Ms Stevens had been on dialysis for four years.
Her husband Chris had offered to be a live donor and the Tullamarine couple went through the donation program almost to the end before a final test found him to be incompatible.
The couple were devastated. Then, in the early hours of Sunday, Ms Stevens received the call.
“I’d been in dialysis for four years and told that I could be a few years off getting that phone call so I hadn’t even prepared for it,” she said.
“It was a shock.
“By the time you get the phone call and rush in here, I didn’t get the chance to think about being nervous.”
To join the Australian Organ Donor Register, go to donatelife.gov.au
36 HOURS IN SURGERY
Editha Mousley offered kidney at 10am on Saturday.
‘Patient B’ offered kidney at 1pm Saturday and begins travelling from interstate.
Michael Newman offered kidney at 1.30pm Saturday.
‘Patient D’ offered kidney 6pm Saturday.
Sarah Stevens offered kidney 2am on Monday.
Editha Mousley went to theatre at 1:00am Sunday.
Michael Newman went to theatre at 2:30am Sunday.
‘Patient B’ went to theatre 4:30am Sunday.
‘Patient D’ went to theatre at 3pm Sunday.
Sarah Stevens went to theatre at 10am Monday.