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Myung Jung Kim/PA Archive/Press Association Images
King's College Hospital in London, where the operation was carried out
# Meadhbh McGivern
'We nearly lost her' - Meadhbh McGivern's father describes 14-hour op
Joe McGivern has spoken about the family’s anxious wait as Meadhbh underwent a life-saving liver transplant.
THE FATHER OF Meadhbh McGivern has described how the family “nearly lost” the Leitrim teenager during her life-saving liver transplant last month.
The McGiverns returned to Ireland on an Air Corps jet yesterday after the operation at King’s College Hospital in London, and was transferred to Our Lady’s Hospital for Sick Children in Crumlin, south Dublin.
Speaking to TV3 News from the hospital today, Joe McGivern described the family’s anxious wait as the transplant was carried out. “She was 14 hours in surgery, and the usual would be five to eight hours,” he said. “So we knew after the eighth hour that there were difficulties there, there were issues. She was critical on a few occasions, and we know that there were a few times there when we nearly lost her.”
The 14-year-old’s case sparked controversy in July after she missed out on a transplant when an administrative blunder made the family miss the deadline for the operation.
Earlier today, her father said she was now “doing quite well” as she recovers in hospital.
Read more: Meadhbh McGivern ‘doing quite well’ as she returns to Ireland>
