THE FAMILY of a former Solihull Hospital midwife who died after picking up a chest infection have spoken of their pride about her choice to become an organ donor.
Sara Pitt was just 47 when she died weeks before Christmas in 2021.
But the tragedy gave others a second chance at life after her organs were donated with her decision to carry a donor card thought to have saved or transformed four lives.
Her husband, Karl, has spoken about his wife’s decision to carry a donor card and how it has comforted him.
The retired teacher said Sara would get chest infections every six to nine months and they hadn’t thought too much of it as they usually cleared up with antibiotics and steroids.
However in the weeks leading up to Christmas two years ago Karl remembers Sara saying her infection wasn’t going to clear and she had already spent the week in bed at home, trying to recover and get back to their three children and her job at Heartlands Hospital at the time.
Karl was working at a school in Wolverhampton when their daughter called to say she had called an ambulance for her mum.
Karl said: “After two days, she had become so weak, the doctors said that her struggling for breath was sapping her energy and putting her organs under strain, so they recommended placing Sara in an induced coma to support her breathing and organs and hopefully improve her condition.
“Sara and I agreed, and we said goodbye. We did think she would recover.”
But after five days in hospital, Sara’s condition had not improved and there was nothing more that could be done to help her.
Karl said: “Sara was compassionate, she talked straight, she always gave you time and you appreciated that. Sara was well respected, honest, and she had so much empathy. She connected with everybody.”
Karl added the couple had talked about her decision to be an organ donor while Sara was alive.
He said: “Some months after Sara has passed away, I received a letter to tell me that Sara’s organs had gone on to save or change the lives of four people.
“There is no question that knowing this was a help for us. It meant a lot to know that after helping so many in life, she was able to help so many in death.
“It is important to be registered on the organ donor register. To know that Sara’s donation, after there was nothing that could be done to save her, saved, or made others’ lives easier, is something we will never regret as a family.”
To register your decision click here.
