This article discusses preliminary findings from phenomenological research into the lived experience of liver transplant recipients in New Zealand, focusing on their views about the organ donor, the donor family, and organ donation more generally. It examines data collected during two phases of research; phase one, comprising seventeen qualitative interviews with transplant recipients across New Zealand, and phase two, which entailed a qualitative survey sent to 180 potential research participants. A brief background to liver transplantation in New Zealand is provided, followed by an outline of the eligibility criteria used to select participants for this research. The perspectives of liver transplant recipients are then explored through the themes of the donated liver as a gift, gratitude, what information recipients have about their donor families, communication with donor families, and conceptions of liver transplantation as a transformative experience.

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INTRODUCTION: Advanced technology in medical and pharmacology has increased surgical survival rates for transplant recipients. Therefore, post-transplant care is critical and tightly connected with key focuses on the recipient’s quality of life (QOL). Post-transplant QOL is multifaceted,  encompassing morbidity and personal, social, familial and environmental support for recipients. Post-liver transplantation recovery extends well beyond returning home.METHOD: Building on Wainwright’s research  (Wainwright, 2011a, 2011b; Wainwright, Jülich, Waring, Yeung, Green, 2016), herself a liver transplant recipient, this article reports transplant recipients’ perceptions and experiences after the first three years and discusses how they re-established function in everyday life as they adapted to their new normal to achieve QOL. The research employed interpretive description to interview transcripts and field-notes of 17 liver transplant recipients. Data were evaluated according to inductive thematic analysis. Eschewing the health-related QOL measure for its rigidity and lack of qualitative data, this research captured the lived experiences of liver transplant recipients unlike clinically  focused studies.FINDINGS: The results showed that, although transplantation can make positive changes in their lives, recipients continued to be influenced subtly by illness which can alter their re-conceptualisation and re-definition of QOL and normalcy. The success of a liver transplant does not depend only on the physical care given; to the recipients as the spectre of future ill health and transplant failure continue to be perceived as a constant risks. Ongoing support from family, friends, and healthcare professionals are none-the-less fundamental in the post-transplantation journey.