The Minogue family in Freshford, Co Kilkenny, is waiting for a life-giving telephone call. Parents Liam and Mary carry a mobile phone and paging unit at all times, waiting for the call to tell them there are organs available for transplant for their daughter Emma (12). Brothers Vincent (20) and Brian (17) are on standby to give any assistance they can.
Emma was diagnosed as having cystic fibrosis when she was three months old.
A lively and active child, she was told by surgeons in April that she would need a lung-and-heart transplant within 12 to 18 months.
At the beginning of September, when the world was mourning the death of Princess Diana, the call came from Harefield Hospital in England that it was ready to operate. The Minogues made the journey to the hospital, but things didn't work out.
"There was huge disappointment that things didn't work out after that call, but the experience has merely strengthened our hope that all will be right in the end," Liam said.
Emma was assessed for the operation at the Royal Brompton Hospital after being referred there by Crumlin Hospital consultant, Dr Brian Denham. "In the end, it was Emma who made the decision herself to have the operation," Mary said. "Everything involved was explained to her, and she signed the consent form herself. She even gave her consent to give her heart to another child after her operation."
Two days after the trip to Harefield, Emma was back at her desk in sixth class at Freshford National School. "She is an amazing child," said her school principal, Mr Tom Doheny. He is chairman of a local fund-raising committee, whose only brief is to "help the family". "It is almost as if the whole area has adopted Emma, such is the concern for her," he said. "The support the family has received in all sorts of ways from concerned people has been tremendous."
The South Eastern Health Board has a contingency plan for when that phone call comes again. Its ambulance transport supervisor, Mr Eamon Conway, has a vehicle on standby at all times to take the Minogues to Dublin Airport.
Aer Lingus has pre-booked seats for the family whenever they are needed. When organs become available, Emma has between four and five hours to get to Harefield and into the operating theatre. In the meantime, she is building herself up for the surgery. She has been told to put on weight and, after sticking to a special diet and intravenous feeding while she sleeps, she has put on a stone.
"Emma really pushes herself to do things, even to go to school," her mother said. "Despite her difficulties, she gets plenty of fun out of life."
One of the delights of her life is her pony, Rose. Her parents believe a little tete-a-tete between the two helped Emma make up her mind about the operation. "She had a little chat with Rose, and I think she felt better about everything after that," Liam said. "There's a special bond between the two of them. They often have little chats".