Celebrating donors and families
Barts Health Organ Donor Memorial
Royal London Hospital, Whitechapel
Almost a decade ago, the Barts Health Organ Donation Committee asked for a permanent artwork at the Royal London Hospital, Whitechapel, to commemorate donors, as well as raise awareness of organ donation.
In Organ Donation Week 2023 the memorial, created by artist Saad Qureshi and inspired by the memories of organ donors, recipients and their families, was unveiled. This is the story of the project.
This memorial is our thank you to donors and their families, for saving the lives of others through the gift of organ donation.”
Creating a place of solace
THE Barts Health Organ Donor Memorial is dedicated to those who have passed away in our intensive care units and made the decision to become organ donors.
We hope it offers a place of solace, recognition and inspiration to grieving families and to our local communities. The decision to donate organs represents an extraordinary act of generosity. This memorial is our thank you to donors and their families, for saving the lives of others through the gift of organ donation, offering the opportunity of a transplant to those who need it most.
Amidst profound sorrow, the knowledge that their family member's legacy lives on through organ donation can offer families
deep comfort and pride We hope the Barts Health Organ Donor Memorial serves as a special place where families can reflect on their loved ones' altruism, contemplate the lives they've saved and the enduring impact their decision has had.
Furthermore, we hope the Organ Donor Memorial informs our local communities about the dedicated work of the healthcare professionals who provide support throughout the organ donation process
Across all Barts Health sites, Specialist Nurses in Organ Donation, Clinical Leads in Intensive Care and Emergency Departments; Barts Health nurses, doctors and NHS Blood and Transplant specialists, all provide support and expertise to grieving families during these critical moments.
Barts Health Organ Donation Committee pictured in 2020
The memorial symbolises the unwavering commitment of th healthcare providers, who tirel ensure organ donation is carrie with respect and dignity.
This memorial was a project i development for nearly a deca artwork was commissioned in collaboration with Vital Arts an Saad Qureshi’s vision, with fina support from Barts Charity, all whom we would not have bee realise our plan. We are proud this new artwork to our comm testament to those no longer w
The Barts Health Organ Dono Memorial is dedicated to those people who chose to donate th organs and their families, to th dedication of our healthcare te to the potential for renewed li
We hope it offers comfort to families, inspires altruism with broader community and provid lasting tribute to those who have given new life in their passing. It should serve as a beacon of hope, compassion and unity to all who encounter this new work, honour the enduring power of the human spirit and the transformative impact of organ donation
y donors a year. The more who register their support, the more lives can be saved. Just one organ donor can save up to nine lives – or improve up to 50 lives if tissue is also donated.
Tim Owen Jones, Specialist Nurse Organ Donation for Barts Health Organ Donation Committee
It should serve as a beacon of hope compassion and unity.”
Confirm your organ donation decision on the NHS Organ Donor Register. For more information or to register decisions, visit www.organdonation.org.uk, use the NHS App or call 0300 123 23 23. Users of the NHS App can also check or amend their decision.
Artist Saad Qureshi and Barts CEO Dr Neil Ashman at the memorial launch
THE PROJECT
Inspired by our memories
VITAL Arts, the charitably funded arts organisation within Barts Health NHS Trust, collaborated with the Organ Donation Committee at Barts Health NHS Trust and NHS Blood and Transplant to deliver this long anticipated artwork by the celebrated British artist, Saad Qureshi.
The project emerged from a request by the Organ Donation Committee for a permanent artwork to commemorate donors, as well as raise awareness of organ donation. Alighting upon the right artist for this significant and sensitive project was a long process but, after extensive research, Vital Arts proposed Saad Qureshi, whose response to the brief was innovative and heartfelt. His enthusiasm stood out like a shining beacon
Memory, and how we process experience, is one of the central themes running through Qureshi’s practice. The artist spent time with patients, donors and their loved ones, asking them to share significant moments in the lives of donors and organ recipients
The artist has given form to his poetic interpretation of many of the narratives he heard about organ donation. It invites repeated viewing and takes time to unfold.
Saad’s response was innovative and heartfelt.”
He has used the themes of these stories as inspiration for his final work, unveiled during Organ Donation Week 2023.
The final work is permanently sited at the entrance lobby to the Renal Unit of the Royal London Hospital, as a space of solace for bereaved families whose loved ones have donated organs, and for those to express gratitude for having received organs – as well as a space for others to consider organ donation. The artwork is accessible from within the building and outward facing, behind a glazed frontage, so visible day and night. We are grateful to Barts Charity who generously funded the project.
Catsou Roberts Director of Arts and Health, Vital Arts, Barts Health NHS Trust
THE ARTIST
SAAD Qureshi received an MFA in Painting from The Slade School of Fine Art, London, in 2010. His work has been exhibited at internat-ional venues including, Yorkshire Sculpture Park, Wakefield; Nature Morte Gallery, New Delhi; Aicon Gallery, New York; I'Institut des Cultures d'Islam, Paris; Museum Arnhem, Netherlands; Kunsthall 3,14, Bergen; Drawing Room, London; and White Project Gallery, Paris. His work is held in public collections in Dubai, Beijing, New Delhi, Boston, Quatar and California.
In 2021 he was shortlisted for the SkyArts LANDMARKS public art commission, and he features in the 2020 Thames & Hudson book 100 Sculptors of Tomorrow.
Saad has received the Celeste Prize, Rome; the Royal Society of British Sculptors bursary award; the Red Mansion Foundation Prize; two Arts Council of England awards; and he was shortlisted for the Lecturis Award, Amsterdam
What fundamentally distinguishes us is our memory, the events of our lives.”
He says: “With this artwork, I want to explore the notion of continuity: of memoryover and beyond lifetime, and of the gift of donation, where a person gives an organ so that another can live, but that in doing so, a part of the donor’s body is offered a new lease of life.
“When we look at people, we see their outward appearance, which is extremely diverse across the world, but inside we are all flesh, blood and bone. What fundamentally distinguishes us is our memory, the events of our lives.
“The phenomenon of organ donation brings a new imaginative dimension to the notion of what it is to be alive.”
Saad Qureshi
An enduring connection OUR STORIES: ANN AND EMILY
I WAS memo
Ann, f She w family most p faced w Meet experie stories signific relatio swimm swimm holiday snorke authen about for years to come
After we lost her I often went swimming, trying to process life without her. It was also where I felt closest to her
Saad asked me about the last time I saw my mum before her accident My family spent a week in Cornwall, and she was eager to visit a cove, which was popular wild swimming spot.
As we descended to the cove, the beauty of the stretch sparkling in the sunshine shone from beneath us, so we raced down and quickly dived into the water. We vaulted over waves and laughed as my sister, Tori, took photos and videos on her new GoPro. The last photo of me and my mum is the two of us with my arm round her, smiles
Ann and Emily
I find it comforting – like she is reaching out to me.”
beaming from the swim and from a great week spent together. Afterwards, I said goodbye and caught a train with my boyfriend to Glastonbury. In our short time together, Saad showed me how important water had been in my relationship with my mum. This was an overwhelming realisation for me and since I have found more memories of us comprising water I find it comforting –like she is reaching out to me.
I remain enduringly proud of my mum for the gift she has given others and for being on the register – so that when the worst happened we knew her wishes, no questions Emily, daughter of Ann, organ donor
Somewhere we can reflect OUR STORIES: TOM AND LISA
IT IS December 2015 and in the foyer of RLH Whitechapel looking at a towering Christmas tree and thinking 'I won’t be having Christmas this year. Isn’t there somewhere else to sit?’
I, my husband Graham and daughter Philippa, were waiting to see my son Tom in the mortuary The day before, his organs and tissue had helped save and improve the lives of up to 50 people, including two-year-old Fatima, who received part of his liver, and 60year-old Gordon, who was given his heart. It was some comfort at the worst time of my life.
Tom had tragically died after being accidentally struck on the back of the head by a hockey stick while playing the game he loved He had been rushed to RLH but after a series of scans we were told in Critical Care that Tom had suffered a fatal sub arachnoid brain haemorrhage and there was no hope It was an indescribably awful time but in the midst of it, Graham said to me: “There isn’t anything anyone can do for Tom but there is something Tom could do for others – organ donation.”
We asked to see a SNOD and the lovely Michelle surprised us when she told us Tom was already on the electronic OD register after signing up as a fresher at university in Nottingham. He had made the decision easy for us
Tom
Tom had made the decision easy for us.”
Two months later our family suffered another cruel twist when Graham died suddenly. His last words to me were: “Keep Tom’s memory alive.”
I thought about that moment sitting by the Christmas tree at RLH and wondered whether a memorial to other donors was possible My enquiries led me to joining the ODC in December 2017 and, to my surprise, I discovered my very own SNOD Michelle had first raised the idea the same year Tom died
I decided to try and help move the project forward with committee
Graham, Philippa, Lisa andTom
member Val Lea, using some funding from the Tom Wilson Memorial Fund –the charity we set up to highlight organ donation – to promote it.
Many meetings followed with stakeholders including Vital Arts, the site team and others In 2022 a site for the memorial in the hospital was agreed and funding was offered from Barts Charity.
We shortlisted and interviewed artists and were delighted when the innovative Saad agreed to design the memorial
The committee was particularly moved by his idea to use donor families and recipients’ life experience as the inspiration for the design.
I arranged for him to meet donor families and recipients to share their stories I took much pride when Saad interviewed Fatima
and her mother Lubna, seven years after receiving her life-saving transplant. It feels incredible that all these strands have come together and we stand on the brink of seeing the memorial unveiled. I will sit by it and gain great comfort from knowing my son too is now being remembered through this legacy, this artwork. I hope others will draw strength and reflect on their loved ones too.
Reading the stories in the area from donor families will help many on the same journey and remind them they are not alone in their brave decision. Saad’s design will not be a Christmas tree but a beautiful memorial to all those at RLH who have given the most precious gift of all – the gift of life.
Lisa, mum of Tom, organ donor www tomwilsonmemorialfund co uk
My promise to my donor OUR STORIES: STUART
THIS December I will be celebrating 28 years since my kidney transplant. I found taking a trip down memory lane, in my talk with artist Saad, to be a very emotional and rewarding experience.
I wanted to contribute to the organ donation memorial, as organ donation has been such a blessing to me, and I owe so much to my donor
I have faced some of the toughest moments in my life at this hospital xSometimes it can be difficult to look back, reflecting on my experience with kidney failure, which has been very tough on my life and on my mental health.
I wanted to participate so we can all come together in honour of donors.
My transplant on December 5, 1995, literally changed my life and I will always be so very grateful to my donor. While going through it all on my own, I just thought of my donor.
I struggle to put into words what they did for me, as I know how I was feeling at the time I made a vow – a promise to my donor – that I would do everything I could to look after my new kidney.
I hope the organ donation memorial will be a place of reflection, a place where we remember our wonderful donors and what they did for us.
Our donors give us so much renewed hope in the face of adversity. A kidney transplant enables us to be free of a dialysis machine, free to travel and get back to work
I continue the routine I put in place nearly 28 years ago to this day – keeping that promise I made to my kidney donor
Stuart Smith, organ recipient
Stuart
Getting our freedom back OUR STORIES: DENNIS AND VAL
I WAS 50 when I was diagnosed with renal failure in January 1996 and the decline was rapid.
By September I was on CAPD (Continuous Ambulatory Peritoneal Dialysis) This involved having a stent in my abdomen through which a solution of glucose was fed into the stomach area. The inner lining acted as a filter and removed waste from my blood that my kidneys would normally have filtered out. I was walking around with 2 or 3 kilos of liquid in my abdomen
After several hours the liquid had to be emptied out and poured away then new liquid poured in. I initially had to change the fluid three times each day but the deterioration continued and by early
2000, I was changing the fluid five times a day including during the night Life was very restricted in one sense; the routine was relentless and my diet had to be strictly controlled. The worst part was the tiny amount of liquid I was allowed. Despite this, we tried to live our lives as normally as possible I continued to work, doing the exchange at lunchtime in the Occupational Health Department. We went for days out and, with the help of the renal team, had various holidays abroad
However, I was becoming more and more frail until that wonderful moment in March 2000 when we got that call. A possible match had been found
xxxx.”
Dennis and Val
The biggest highlight is seeing our son marry, have children and be involved in their lives.”
We dashed to the Royal London Hospital, had the necessary tests and had the transplant surgery on March 14
The kidney didn’t work initially but the staff reassured me that those that were slow to work were likely to last the longest
That has certainly proved the case for me as 23-and-a-half years later my kidney is still going strong. I have had numerous serious illnesses since my transplant and my new kidney has coped with it all.
I can’t thank enough the wonderful family who agreed to the donation and to the renal team at the Royal London Hospital. It has transformed my life.
The biggest highlight is seeing our son marry, have children and be involved in their lives I have my independence back and some control over my life.
My wife and I can have days out and holidays without having to worry about arranging supplies and transporting medical equipment.
I can eat a range of foods and drink as much fluid as I want without the restrictions. I feel a great responsibility towards my organ donor and their family.
Dennis, kidney recipient
DENNIS AND I worked for the NHS for more than 20 years and when I retired I was asked to become the Chair of the Whipps Cross Organ Donation Committee.
The committee was disbanded in 2013 after Barts Health took over Whipps Cross. In 2015 I was invited to become a patient representative on the Barts Organ Donation Committee.
Although the project had the support of the Group Chief Executive, it was making little progress because identifying a suitable site was complicated by building work at RLH.
It was important it should be in a location allowing quiet reflection but also visible enough to provoke discussion about organ donation.
We wanted the design to be respectful, uplifting and large enough to be noticed without being so huge anyone would question the cost. Its purpose was to honour organ donation.
I hope the memorial is a fitting tribute to donors, their families and recipients. I feel passionate about promoting the need for organ donation. Dennis was very ill during 1999 and I’m convinced the would have died soon if he hadn’t received a donated kidney.
We are totally indebted to that generous family.
Val, wife and carer of Dennis
Maybe it’s chance but I favour love
ORGAN transplants are, in part, a matter of chance. It is simply chance which meant that I required a transplant, and chance that a family member was willing to donate.
It was a chance meeting with the inimitable Lisa that gave me the opportunity to speak to Saad about my transplant, and the surrounding experience, and it is chance that you have stopped to read this.
I feel very grateful to have been able to speak to Saad just a matter of weeks after my transplant I don’t remember much of our conversation.
A post-hospital, adrenaline and immunosuppression infused haze settled in after the operation and I’m sure, for the most part, what I said didn’t make sense However, I do remember attempting to explain the love I felt when I was in hospital, how great it was that I was aware of it and how, if given the option, I would bottle up that feeling and drink a little every day so as to not become overwhelmed or waste it.
If there is anything in my power I can do to increase the chance of someone else having the experience I have had, I would jump at the opportunity.
If you haven’t registered to donate, or spoken to family and friends about it, I would urge you to. If you feel uncomfortable, know that there is a network of people, myself included, who are happy to speak. So, I’d like to modify my statement on chance
Organ donations are, mostly, a matter of love. You don’t have to donate or be a recipient to experience this love – starting a conversation about donating or lending a willing ear is more than sufficient And love just blows chance out of the water.
Fergal, kidney recipient
Fergal
ORGAN DONOR MEMORIAL LAUNCH,
SEPTEMBER 22, 2023
Artist Saad Qureshi
The memorial was opened by the Rt Hon Jacqui Smith Chair of Barts Health NHS Trust
OD Committee member Val presented with flowers by fellow member Lisa and consultant Lynne Barrass
Speakers Raj Thuraisingham, left, Fiona Bickley, donor family member Emily and Alistair Chesser
Photographs by Simon Raeburn-Ward
WITH GRATEFUL THANKS TO
With this artwork I want to explore the notion of memory: of continuity over and beyond a lifetime.” Saad Qureshi
