My Story:
Stepping into Adult Care - Hamish
18 years on from Liver Transplant
Hello, I am Hamish Crossan.
I was born with BA, and I had a liver transplant at age 5.5 months.My Mum, Tracy, was my live donor. My whole medical story through transplant can be found on the following link https://idfnz.org.nz/our-famil...
I am now 18 years old and have recently transitioned from the Pediatric liver team to the Adult service. IDFNZ has asked me to comment on the transition experience and what my life looks like 18 years on.
It was daunting (more so for my Mum than me) to say goodbye to the Starship Liver team that had been with us throughout our entire journey.
We have had a close relationship with the Starship team, and we always knew who to call if we had any problems. There was always someone on the end of the phone who knew all about me.
Our transition to the Adult service was made a little smoother by first attending a transition clinic in Auckland, where we had the opportunity to see familiar faces still and were introduced to some new ones at the same time. I was given some contact details of people I could talk to if I needed medical advice or if I was feeling anxious about my well-being.
The Auckland team referred me to the Gastroenterology team at Dunedin Hospital, and I had an appointment with them. We met a lovely Doctor and a support person who provided her contact details and said we could call her anytime.
Living in a small rural town, we are very fortunate that we have an excellent GP, who has been my doctor since I was born. I am sure I have increased his workload over the years with the many documents he would have received about me, and I am sure they have a huge file or two with my name on it!
My GP is usually my first port of call if I have any issues, and he is always swift to seek the right advice on my behalf.
My GP reminds me periodically to get some blood work done, and he is always very prompt in reporting the results back to me.
I am fortunate that my post-transplant journey has been pretty uneventful over the last few years, and I have maintained good health. I take Tacrolimus twice daily, keeping it by my bed to take as my last thing at night and then again in the morning.
I finished School last year and I am now working full-time for an Agricultural Contractor. I love my job, I do have to work very long hours over the Summer, sometimes having to drive a tractor right through the night to get the job done.
I am still playing hockey, I am the goalie for a local Men’s team and we travel to Cromwell every Saturday to play. I still live at home on the farm with Mum and Dad (Gavin) and my younger brother Ryan. When I’m not working, I am usually made to do farm work at home.
