Man provides organ without designating a recipient

[okarol]

Local kidney donor the first of his kind at UIHC
Man provides organ without designating a recipient

Chris Rhatigan • Iowa City Press-Citizen • November 29, 2008

An Iowa City man has become the first person at University Hospitals to donate a kidney without designating a recipient.

Ed Grattan underwent surgery Nov. 13 to provide a kidney to a man who he doesn't know. Grattan said he never found out who the recipient was and that he is "fine with that."

"I thought of this guy as having my kidney for the first three days. But after about the third day, I thought, nope, it's his kidney now," Grattan said.

University Hospitals spokesman Tom Moore said Grattan is the first person at the hospital to provide his kidney to "any patient that needed it," as donations typically are designated for family or friends.

Moore characterized this as "an extremely generous act."

Grattan downplayed the act, saying that he is hardly the first person to have donated an organ.

He said he initially was inspired to donate by a local news story regarding Kathy Duttlinger.

Duttlinger was riding in an elevator with a fellow hospital employee, Yolanda Frudden, whom she barely knew. She learned that Frudden needed a kidney and recently had found out that none of her family members would be able to donate.

Duttlinger said she would donate a kidney if she was a match. It turns out that she was, and she made good on her promise.

"I just remember that story, and I thought, 'Holy cow, that's quite a sacrifice,'" Grattan said.

He began praying about his decision and said that God confirmed his choice to become a donor.

"My reason for doing this is because of God's love for us," Grattan said.

Several other factors played into Grattan's decision to donate.

He said that his job in financial services doesn't require any manual labor. If it did, he probably would have had to take a few months off from work after the surgery.

He said that he has been "blessed with unbelievably good health." And because kidney disease doesn't run in his family, Grattan said it's doubtful he would ever have to donate to a member of his family.

Since the donation about two weeks ago, Grattan said he hasn't had any complications. He's been back at work at Primerica in North Liberty since a couple of days after the surgery and has been walking his dogs regularly.

Next summer, Grattan plans to participate in two triathlons. He said that he wants to demonstrate to other athletes that "you can do something like this and still live an athletic, competitive lifestyle."

Dr. Alan Reed, University Hospitals Division of Transplant Surgery director, did not return calls seeking comment.

http://www.press-citizen.com/article/20081129/NEWS01/811290329/1079