Thought provoking human installation highlights the need for more living kidney donors

Sales shoppers at the Bluewater Shopping Centre in Kent were amazed to see a man who donated one of his kidneys inside a shop window alongside six mannequins, representing the six people who die each week waiting for a kidney. Each of the figures are seen lifting up their t-shirts to reveal the question “is it in you to save a life?”.

The shop façade itself has also been given a makeover and transformed into a giant t-shirt with the window displaying the shocking statistic. There is also a mirror installed for shoppers to use to encourage a brief moment of self reflection on whether they could consider living kidney donation

The powerful installation was organised as part of the nationwide Make Your Mark campaign, to highlight the need for more living kidney donors in the UK.

Shoppers and campaign website visitors are invited to complete an online quiz where people can consider if it’s inside them to donate a kidney.

John Burns, 66, from Bromley is one of three living donors taking part in the installation. John, who donated his kidney to a stranger in 2019, said:

“In 2017 I read an article in a national newspaper about a woman who had given a kidney to someone she didn’t know, and it instantly struck a chord with me. I did some research into the process and after meeting kidney recipients at an event and hearing directly the impact this had on their life, I knew it was something I had to do.

“I feel so honoured to be asked to be part of this valuable campaign as I know from personal experience just how life changing giving a stranger your kidney can be. Most of the good things people would like to do, they can’t because of other restrictions such as financial or skill set, but giving a kidney, in my opinion, is one of the best long term-good acts someone can do, if they are able.

“I hope that by standing in this window at least one person will decide to become a donor and that even if no one there and then does so, that they will go home and talk about it. The more people who talk about it, the more people who know about it, the more that kidney donation drifts out of the realm of extreme altruism and into the normal range of what people can do.”

Make Your Mark was launched by the charities Kidney Research UK and Give a Kidney earlier this year as part of the Robert Dangoor Partnership for Living Kidney Donation to raise awareness and offer support for anyone interested in learning more.

A poll carried out by the Make Your Mark campaign earlier this year revealed 55% of UK adults would consider donating a kidney to a family member, while over one in seven (13%) would even consider donating a kidney to a stranger. If these people were to come forward to donate, they would not only save lives but also save the NHS money compared to keeping patients on expensive and life-limiting dialysis treatment, as shown in a report released by Kidney Research UK in 2023.

The partnership’s Bob Wiggins, himself a living donor, said: "I hope this installation will have a real impact on those people who see it. I donated one of my kidneys in 2013. If this installation sparks curiosity for even a few people to start that journey themselves then it will make an enormous difference to those six people who die in the UK each week from the lack of availability of a suitable kidney donor. This new year, why not make a resolution to do something incredible and consider giving the gift of a life to a stranger?”

The installation will remain in place for two days and will also include living donor George Cannon, 24, from Ramsgate.

To find out more about becoming a living kidney donor please visit https://www.donateakidney.co.uk