A NURSE whose children have both received heart transplants is urging Scots to join the organ donor register.

As exclusively told in the Evening Times, Mary Moffat's life was turned upside down when she learned her children needed life saving surgery.

Rachael and Stephen were both diagnosed with a condition called Restrictive Cardiomyopathy - as was their dad, Andy.

The pair became the first siblings in the UK to have heart transplants but their father, Andy, died during surgery to replace his heart.

Mary, from Motherwell, said: “In the year that Rachael started school, she was really tired all the time. I would come home from work every day and find her sleeping. My other kids would want to get up at the weekend and do stuff, but she would just want to sleep. She would also fall asleep in really odd places.

“I thought that there was something wrong and discussed my concerns with my mother-in-law.

“My husband had a blocked aorta when he was young and she saw the same symptoms in Rachael as she had seen in my husband.”

Mary took Rachael to the paediatrician at Wishaw Health Centre, who referred her to Yorkhill Children’s Hospital.

Mary added: “At the time Rachael was referred to Yorkhill, my husband called me at work to say that Stephen had collapsed. He was ten years old at the time. There was no lead up to it. He was very active and had wanted to be a professional footballer.

“When Stephen collapsed for a second time, he was also referred to Yorkhill.

“After their tests, we went back to the clinic to see the consultant. I knew something was really wrong and I tried everything to keep my mind off the news that I was going to get.

“The consultant told us that both children had a condition called Restrictive Cardiomyopathy.

“When you are told something like that, you can’t take it in. I was really upset and you try to think that it must be someone else’s children that they are talking about.

“I knew of people who had Restrictive Cardiomyopathy and had hadn’t survived.

“They looked really well at the time. I tried to persuade myself that they had made a mistake and that they were ok.”

Mary and her husband were also given tests, which resulted in him also being diagnosed with the condition.

Both children were quickly added to the organ donor register.

Mary said: “Two weeks after joining the register, Stephen was offered a transplant. Due to his age, he had a better chance of finding an organ than a younger child would have had.

“Eight months later, Rachel received hers.

“They both received their transplants within a year of being diagnosed, which is extremely quick. They have kept really well since.

“To donate an organ is the biggest gift you can ever give. I would like to thank the two families who donated their loved ones hearts so that my children could live.”

Mary, a midwife at Wishaw General Hospital, now wants to encourage local residents to join the organ donor register in a bid to save more lives like her children’s.

More than 40 per cent of Scots have already made their wishes known by joining the NHS Organ Donor Register, but it’s vital you tell your family to ensure your wishes are carried out should anything happen to you.

The Evening Times's Opt For Life campaign is calling for change to a similar system of presumed consent with all the necessary safeguards built in to protect those who do not wish to take part.

To find out more about organ donation and to join the NHS Organ Donor Register, visit www.organdonationscotland.org