Woman saves three lives after making crucial decision before sudden death

24 September 2023 , 19:49

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Abi Guojah died in August 2022 and donated her organs, saving three people's lives

Half a million Brits have signed up for the organ donation register via the NHS app after a surge in kind-hearted donors last year.

The number of people downloading it went up by around a third in 2022 to 33 million and 547,000 have so far used it to register as donors. The NHS is tomorrow launching an appeal for more of us, including older patients, to download the app to help manage our health.

And bosses hope using it will encourage more to join the register. One mother has told how her daughter’s decision to donate her organs brought comfort to the family after the young woman’s sudden death.

Abi Guojah, 32, died last year but donated her heart, kidneys and pancreas to save three lives. Her mum Valerie explained: “It really helped knowing Abi had joined the register. It might have been a hard call if she hadn’t been. Knowing it was what Abi wanted gave us peace of mind.”

It was not the first time Abi, from Harrow, North West London, had saved a life. While living in South Africa in 2017 she rescued a friend who had a cardiac arrest while swimming in the sea. Abi got her out of the water and shouted for CPR help, saving her life.

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Valerie, 66, said: “Abi was lively and gregarious. She made friends easily. She was clever and funny, could be quite outspoken and a bit of a daredevil. She was very caring and always wanted to help people and organ donation fitted with her personality.”

Only one per cent of people will die in the right circumstances for their organs to be donated. The NHS hopes more people will use the app to join the register after consent rates had dipped. The app is increasingly being used by patients to book routine vaccinations, order repeat prescriptions and receive messages from their doctors.

Martin O’Neil, NHS England’s director for the app, said: “When more than 7,000 patients are waiting for a transplant, it’s encouraging to see that the total number of organ donation decisions registered for the first time through the NHS App has increased by over 20% in the last year.”

Martin Bagot