We have come down to the last two people person on the list who have offered to be tested as a Living Kidney Donor. Of the two who have been in process with OHSU, one is "on hold" until June for any additional testing and the other was just disqualified at the cross match phase.
An email went out yesterday to the last person on the list to see if they are still interested, and hope to hear back from them in the next few days. If they are, we will begin again with OHSU, if not, we are basically done.
There is still the option of the Deceased Donor List, but OHSU has me on hold for that right now because I am not walking. However, having been listed for 3 years and not finding a match that way, it doesn't look like a viable option anyway.
(OHSU basically called us Friday with the news that the one candidate was ruled a non-viable match at the cross match phase, and that they had changed their minds, again, about putting me on the active Deceased Donor List until I can walk. the issue with that is we got a call last week from the physical therapy clinic. The lift they use to get patients in and out of the pool broke, and they are not fixing or replacing it. Which means I cannot use them for PT anymore. Which means I have no means of getting back on my feet and walking at this point. There are no other PT clinics in Bend with a lift, so we are trying to figure out our next step. Not a good place to be right now.)
UPDATE: I just located a PT with the equipment needed to get me in and out of a pool for therapy. Now we need a "Care Plan" to outline for OHSU approx. when I will be able to stand, then take a few steps, then walk with a walker, etc. Hooray!
Back to the donor issues.
I need to try and locate anyone who may be willing to be tested as a potential living kidney donor. A living kidney donor match is still a long shot, but a deceased donor match is even more of a long shot. It's a number game. Period. The larger the pool of candidates, the better the chance of a match.
Desperately.
Would you be willing to help spread the word via your blog or social media (such as Twitter, Facebook, etc)?Some helpful links on the process are:
Who Can Be A Donor and How Are They Evaluated
Benefits of Living Kidney Donation
A view from the other side of the picture: Direct from an actual Living kidney donor
Another option we have created is in the form of a brochure/flier that outlines, succinctly, our need. We have had several people offer up some things they are willing to do, such as:
- Placing in a retail environment, in the front window or stack on the counter for takeaways
- Briefly explaining the need in the "Announcement" time during their church service, and putting the flier in the bulletin or in the lobby
- Hanging on public or church bulletin boards
- One lady is going to include a link in the monthly mailings of her online newsletter
If you can think of any other ideas, please let me know. You can either add it in the Comment section below, or email me jkbach(at)comcast.net.
And if you would like a .pdf copy of the flier, please let me know as well. It should be ready soon.
Lastly, a HUGE SHOUT OUT to David at Hudson Design Group, who has been putting together the flier with a little bit of input on my side. Helpful input like "I would like it to look sassy" or "Feel free to take all of my excessive verbiage, and make it readable to a normal person. And succinct." (note, succinct is not my strong suit).
Please let me know if you would be willing to help in some way. I would really like to say a personal Thank you to each of you.
Thank you all again for your help, your prayers, your support, your email of encouragement, your email of really, really bad jokes (you know who you are), and your offers to fly out here and give me a big, huge hug.
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