Ayr transplant man says a heartfelt thank you

Jul 18 2008 by Yonnie McInnes

RONNIE Wilson has beaten the odds to survive 15 years with a new heart.

The 71-year-old insists that every day is a bonus since the transplant saved his life.

The Ayr man has revealed his own story in a bid to encourage people to join the organ donor register.

Ronnie was told to expect a further 10 years of life after the surgery in 1993.

He said: “After reaching that milestone I began to call each year my bonus one.

“I have never talked to the press before about my transplant but am happy to do so now to help raise awareness about organ donation.”

Ronnie had his first heart attack on the golf course at Troon.

He explained: “I also fell ill while working in Japan and then Dubai.

“Eventually I was referred to Newcastle and put on the transplant list then was lucky to be transferred to Glasgow.

“When we were in Newcastle we saw a 14-year-old footballer who was waiting for a heart transplant – which we later learned he got – and also a tiny baby who needed a new heart.

“That’s when you realise how lucky you really are and it’s why I’d love the opt-out organ donation scheme to be introduced.”

After a 15-month wait on the transfer list Ronnie, who lives in Alloway with his wife of 52 years Sue, received the call from Glasgow Royal Infirmary that saved his life.

He added: “By 10.15pm I was in the Royal, having been rushed up to Glasgow by police escort, and operated on at 1am.

“I was lucky my donor heart was compatible. One chap from Aberdeen, who was in at the same time as me, was sent home twice.”

Ronnie, who was a chief technician with the Royal Navy for many years, takes a cocktail of 13 different drugs every day to stop his body from rejecting his new heart.

He went on: “My father died at 48 from a heart attack, and my grandfather at 62, so I reckon I’m doing well.

“Every six months I have to go to hospital for tests, and other scans to make sure everything is okay and now get my check-ups at the new lung and heart unit at the Golden Jubilee Hospital.”

And Ronnie often thinks of the family who made the decision to donate their loved one’s organs.

He said: “I still can’t help thinking I’ve had 15 good years because of another family’s loss. I only wish I could meet them and thank them for their courage in allowing the transplant to take place at what must have been a horrendous time.

“I’d like to be able to tell that family that thanks to their generosity Sue and I have shared many, many, happy, times – including the birth of our great granddaughter Isabella, who is now two.

“She is such a joy to us.

“Without that heart donation all of the past 15 years would have been so different for Sue and our family and nobody is more grateful than we are.”

Sue added: “Once we reached the 10th anniversary of Ronnie’s transplant we decided we’d never plan anything for next year and determined if we wanted to do something, we’d go straight ahead and do it. And that’s what we do, we live each day at a time.”