Singing Vicky says a big thank you to NHS

Express & Star

A former patient who says she owes her life to the NHS has thrown an elaborate thank you party to show her gratitude to the Wolverhampton teams. Dr Yaa Victorine Ngamsha – Vicky – is originally from Cameroon but came to the UK to get married in 2001, moving to Birmingham in 2007 and Bentley in Walsall a year later.

Transcript

00:00It was that moment, a phone call you never imagined. I dropped tears of joy. I was like,

00:08oh, and they said, no, you need to come now. My name is Victorine Ngamsha. I'm popularly known

00:16as Dr. Yaa, which means queen in African word, lamso. Yaa Victorine Ngamsha, or doctor.

00:25And I live in Warsaw for the past 20 years, 21 years. I am 51 years old and I'm a mother

00:38and happily married woman. Basically before any symptoms, before I became really ill with kidney

00:45failure, I was a very happy woman, busy woman, a mother, and going about traveling the world

00:54and singing as a professional musician, motivational speaker, and of course, a passionate

01:01housewife. So love cooking, but as a professional musician, I went to different countries like

01:09America, Germany, Canada, and so on. Then I had some time as well to do a lot for the community

01:18in Africa. I was privileged to set up two libraries with books donated by people in

01:25the West Midlands in Cameroon, one for Kikaikelaki, which is my husband's village, and one for Shisong,

01:32which is my alma mater, St. Francis Comprehensive High School. And all of this took me to

01:41being busy, giving to the community, and building my business at the time. I also had the opportunity

01:48to study at the University of Amsterdam and had a business information system.

01:55In 2013, I traveled to Cameroon with my family, husband, and children. We had a fantastic time.

02:02Then we returned to the UK. We flew through Turkey. On the way, we got to Turkey where we

02:07had to pass a night in a hotel before coming over to the UK. And I felt horrible. I felt so weak.

02:15I felt so there was no taste of food. I was so tired. And I said, I don't feel well. But when we

02:21got to the UK anyway, I said to my husband, I'm going to go over to the hospital and I'm going

02:28to check what's going on. That time was just 2013. I think there was this Ebola. So I thought maybe

02:35I've got Ebola. So I went to hospital and bang, they said my kidney function was very low.

02:43I know they had mentioned to me years back that there was this polycystic kidney disease in South

02:47Hampton General Hospital. But I didn't think about it. They said it will come when you're old. I

02:51didn't realize I was old. But yeah, my kidney was failing at the time. And they started saying,

02:57yeah, we need to hydrate you and also to procedures. And that was the beginning of

03:02this journey of kidney failure. And then from then they deteriorated. As time went on, I kept

03:10going to see the doctors in Walsall Manor at the time. And they said, no, the specialists are in

03:17New Cross Hospital. And I came to the kidney, chronic kidney disease unit in New Cross Hospital.

03:23And I met amazing people. I called them family. In April of 2023,

03:36I went to hospital and I was seen by this lovely doctor who said, I think

03:45we need to do something because the kidney function is about five now. And then they had

03:52to start dialysis. And when dialysis started, I was still ongoing. I was still positive

04:00until the six months of dialysis that took place in the capable hands of the nurses at the home

04:09dialysis unit who trained me how to dialyze from home. And I like to shout out, I can never leave

04:15these names out, Becky and Joe. So they looked after me like I was a princess. So, and everybody

04:25looked after me, the chronic kidney disease unit as well. They were the people who referred me to

04:31the dialysis unit. So it's like going front and back from them because after the dialysis with

04:37the home dialysis unit, then it was time for transplant. During my six months of dialysis,

04:45it was as if my kidneys failed. I was on dialysis and everything failed.

04:52I was positive. I would go on live video and dialyze, putting brick needles in my arm,

04:57but people didn't realize I was going through a lot as well psychologically. It's that time when

05:03I turn around and say, where are my friends? It was so horrible a time. The trying moments

05:09of my family, my husband, my children. So that's why I always describe it when my kidneys failed,

05:14everything failed with my kidneys. And then, you know what? One day, just six months of dialysis,

05:22everything that was good was the care by the NHS, the support, the encouragement, the equipment,

05:28so free and everything. Given that in my country, I have to pay for this. I was paying nothing for

05:34those machines in my house and the saline. I think it was about the 10th-ish of September,

05:462023. I had a message on an email, and this message said, because of the numerous work

05:54you've done, you've been recommended for a doctorate in humanitarian work, PhD in humanitarian

06:01work by a university in Florida, America. And my take at that was, okay, thank you,

06:08but what was I doing with this when I had no kidneys? How would I go to America? So I would

06:14say, oh, thank you, and that was it. Then a few days after that, I went to the shop,

06:21parked my car, bought the ironing board, came out, I was still holding it, and I had a phone call.

06:28It's that, it's that Victorine Gamshaye, oh, this is Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham.

06:35We're just calling to let you know we've got a kidney for you. I dropped the ironing board,

06:40I was like, okay, and I listened, say, are you there? It was that moment, a phone call

06:48you never imagine. I dropped tears of joy. I was like, oh, and they said, no, you need to come now.

06:55I said, yeah, of course, I'll come now. And guys, I'm a very funny girl, but let me show you how I

07:02drove from the store to my house. I was there with my hand on the steering, and when it's safe to do

07:09so, I'll just hold the steering. Jesus, thank you. Thank you. I was so, so happy. I was like,

07:15I've got a kidney, as you can imagine, and that was the most special time in my life.

07:22Phoned my husband, told my son, who just cried and hugged me, so we hurried to Queen Elizabeth

07:27Hospital, and I had this VIP treatment by the nurses and doctors and stuff, God bless them.

07:34It was beautiful. It was swift. It was smart, and I had a transplant on the 15th of September,

07:422023. It was beautiful. Everybody was, you know, they care. I'd never known that there's a posh

07:56place like this in Birmingham. The ward was like a five-star hotel. It was, and then the

08:04consultants, they came in their numbers. They said, this stage, we're going to go. The kidney

08:08is coming from somewhere, wherever it was coming from, and this time, we're going to,

08:12in a few minutes, it was very, very protocol, and I just couldn't imagine, and they said,

08:20oh, we were not sure about the antibodies, but everything was reassuring, and when I talk of

08:27my transplant, please permit me to say this. God bless my donor. Whoever you are,

08:35I say this in God's name. If I know my donor's family, if I, I will move in. I will make myself

08:40their child, and I know I can never replace whoever, but this is where organ donor come in.

08:48My life was changed. The food was yummy. The bed was comfortable. Everything, everything to do

08:58with me, I was respected. That's why I sang God bless NHS. Thank you, Britain.

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