Open!

UCSF re-opens its doors for living kidney donor surgery!  The news came Thursday that my transplant center was cleared to resume their living kidney donor program!  Woo hoo!!  Maybe they read my last blog post.  🙂

Regarding the donor death that precipitated the suspension in the first place, an SF Gate article quotes the medical examiner’s office:

“We were able to rule out any potential accident related to the surgery… With extensive examination, the medical examiner determined this was indeed natural.”

So that’s good news, though not a surprise to anyone.  UCSF, which has never had a donor death, voluntarily suspended their living donor program until they could positively rule out any errors before proceeding.  So now my donor and I enter the national database (as opposed to patient list just within UCSF) and wait to see if there is a match for us.  On to the next round which I am hopeful will not take long.

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Two weeks ago I was invited to share my kidney experience with some students at U.C. Berkeley.  My friend Susana teaches a class at the Graduate School of Social Welfare and asked me to come give my perspective as a chronically ill patient.  She interviewed me about how I cope, what life looks like for me, how it has affected my family, etc..  I absolutely loved meeting and talking with these students.   Marty was also there to give his input.  As I read some of their feedback a week later, I found it interesting to see my illness from an outsider’s perspective.  I hope I was able to give these future social workers some insight into how to better provide care for chronically ill patients.

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Last Sunday I also shared my experience with my church family at First Covenant Church. Most of them knew I needed a kidney; we announced it there last year.  Sunday was more of an opportunity to share in detail how God has shown up in my life the past two years.  There were moments during this journey where I have wrestled with God and wondered where and how He was at work. This entire journey is an exercise in faith, which sometimes means asking some hard questions about God’s goodness, and finding over time that He is not only sovereign but also faithful in His promise to care for us.   Pastor Nancy incorporated my testimony into her message about God’s power in difficult circumstances.    You can watch/listen to the Sunday message here. (Select message from March 6, 2016).

This coming Sunday,  March 20th, I will be visiting Compass Christian Church in Mountain View, CA, to share  my story there.  Pastor Roy and his wife Esther started this ministry years ago to mobilize and empower leaders in the Silicon Valley to be more effective in their work and relationships.  They meet on Sunday mornings at the German International School.  If you’re in the area we’d love to see you.