‘LOGAN BOULET EFFECT’ WILL HELP SAVE UNTOLD LIVES
Young bus crash victim’s organ donations have inspired thousands more to sign up
Bhavini Ruparell can’t get Logan Boulet and his family out of her mind — not that she wants to.
The 53-year-old mother of two daughters says news that the 21-year-old Humboldt Broncos defenceman was kept on lifesupport by his grieving family for one day in order to have his organs harvested according to his wishes, fills her with a sense of awe and gratitude.
Boulet, who is from Lethbridge, was killed after his Saskatchewan Junior A hockey team’s bus collided with a semi-trailer just outside of Tisdale last Friday, killing 16 people and injuring 13 others on the bus.
It has been reported that six people have been given a new chance at life after receiving the organs from Boulet, who signed his organ donor card when he turned 21 on March 2 and told his parents, Bernadine and Toby, of his wishes.
Some 26 years ago, when she was 27, Ruparell was on dialysis for kidney failure when on Oct. 3, 1992, she received a kidney from an 18-year-old man who died in a motorcycle crash.
“I would love to give big hugs to the families who actually respected their son’s wishes and said, ‘Yes, this is what he wanted and this is what we are going to do,’ ” said Ruparell, who added that a 15-year-old girl also received one of her donor’s kidneys.
This past weekend struck Ruparell hard. Not only is she an organ recipient, but her 17-yearold daughter, Jay, was competing for the Junior Dinos under-17 volleyball team in Edmonton and had travelled there on a team bus.
“I would say (to those families) you have done the biggest honour in his name,” she said, breaking down in tears. “And the fact that the momentum has taken off because of what this family did is something that lots of people in the future are going to benefit from by being the recipient of donors having this conversation.”
The momentum Ruparell is talking about has a name — it’s called the “Logan Boulet effect.”
The uptick in Canadians registering to donate their organs has spiked across Canada.
According to Alberta Health, the Alberta Organ and Tissue Donation registry received 10,744 new registrations for organ and tissue donations from Sunday to Wednesday — a typical Sunday-to-Wednesday period ordinarily brings in an average of 1,140 registrations.
On Thursday, another 1,960 registrations came in, making the five-day total in Alberta 12,704. It’s an astonishing number when the average for a good week is 2,500. Huge increases in organ donation registrations have been noted across the country, with a six-times spike in B.C.
“I think it’s really important for people who are now signing their organ donation cards or registering themselves to have that conversation with their family,” insists Ruparell.
“I go online and I see people saying they have registered to be an organ donor because of Logan Boulet, but I write notes back saying, ‘Please, also have a conversation with your family, because unless they know and agree in advance, they may stop it from happening at a traumatic time,’ ” said Ruparell, who added that her two daughters would not be alive were it not for her organ donor, since they were born after she received her new kidney.
Alberta Health Minister Sarah Hoffman said Boulet’s family “must feel so honoured by the movement he’s created.”
“Logan Boulet’s selfless sacrifice has inspired thousands of others in Alberta and across the country. I would encourage those thinking about organ donation to take the time to register and discuss your wishes with your family,” Hoffman said in a statement. “Because Logan did just that, he’s saving the lives of others and offering hope to the many Canadians awaiting transplants.”
Each donor can save up to eight lives through organ donation and can help as many as 75 people through tissue donation. Of the 4,500 Canadians waiting for a donor organ, 77 per cent are waiting for a kidney, something that can be donated from a living donor, says the Kidney Foundation of Canada.
Donors can register online at www.ultimategiftalberta.ca or at registry offices across the province.
David Smith, president of the Canadian Transplant Association and the recipient of a kidney from his brother, Barry, said Boulet’s inspiring story is a ray of sunshine in an otherwise bleak event that has devastated 29 families and plunged all of Canada into mourning.
“What a legacy Logan Boulet and his family have left,” said Smith.
Ruparell agreed. “Logan Boulet’s legacy is already so massive. It will affect people for generations to come and has helped to educate an entire country on the importance of organ donation,” she said from her Heritage Pointe home.
“I hope every Canadian will remember Logan Boulet,” added Ruparell. “I know I will never forget him or my donor, and the best way we can honour them is by following their example.”