A PAIR of specialist nurses are begging people in Southampton to tell their families about their desire to be organ donors.

They are backing the Daily Echo’s campaign to get more people onto the organ register – and tell their families that they want others to have another chance.

When someone dies in intensive care at Southampton General Hospital it is up to Nicky Matthews and Pascale Withey to ask their families if they want their organs to be passed on to others who need them.

Although someone can be a registered donor their families can still veto those wishes if the worst should happen.

Now they are backing our Seven Weeks To Say I Donate campaign in a bid to get 2,000 people to sign onto the organ donor register by the end of next month.

The organ donor team at Southampton General Hospital have been asking people to make the life-saving promise as 260 people in Hampshire wait for the gift that will change their lives.

Last year 85 lucky people across the county are still here thanks to someone and their families agreeing to donate their organs.

As of last month there are 655,269 people across Hampshire were registered on the Organ Donor Register.

But they added that signing the register is not enough – it is vital to share your decision with family and friends to spare loved ones the difficult burden of making such an emotional decision should the worst happen.

Mum-of-two Nicky said: “The biggest message that we can give out is that families need to talk about it. It’s very difficult for families who don’t know their loves ones wishes to make a decision on their behalf.”

Only those patients who are treated in intensive care will be able to donate their organs. Those who are declared dead outside the hospital can’t provide organs.

Yet despite this, many families still don’t know what their loved ones would have wanted.

Nicky said: “It’s a difficult decision for people to make. It’s the worst day of their lives and you’re having to ask them a very big question.”

The 32-year old added: “People are happy to talk about what holiday they go but they are worried about talking about organ donation and drying, but that’s something that will happen to all of us.”

But Pascale that the perception on organ donation has changed over the years and said that people are more likely to receive an organ themselves rather than be a donor.

The 36-year old added that more families are beginning to talk about it.

Pascale said: “A lot of people think it won’t happen to me. Sometimes it does.”