WHY DONATION? The Difference it Makes
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| Organ donations, making a lively difference |
Organ and Tissue Donation Makes a DifferenceEach year hundreds of thousands of Americans are impacted by organ and tissue donation. In Colorado and Wyoming alone, each year thousands of individuals and families make the selfless decision to give the gift of life by saying 'yes' to organ and tissue donation. Decisions such as these change the lives of more than 500,000 Americans who are saved and enhanced by organ and tissue donation every year.
Organ and Tissue Donation Changes LivesJust one organ donor can save the lives of up to eight people and one tissue donor can impact the lives of more than 50 others. Transplantable organs include the heart, liver, lungs, kidneys, pancreas and small intestine. Tissues that can be transplanted include bone, tendons and corneas as well veins, heart valves and skin. Every year hundreds of thousands of people need donated tissue to prevent or cure blindness, heal burns or save limbs and one out of three people will need donated blood in their lifetime.
For some, the impact of donation may be small or go unnoticed, such as a person receiving donated bone in a simple dental treatment or in common orthopedic procedure. For others, the experience is life-changing and in many cases life-saving. Lives of people suffering from heart and lung disease are saved. Corneal transplants help the blind to see. And donated bone helps restore function to crippled and injured limbs or allows a patient with bone cancer to avoid amputation.
With an average wait of three years for a kidney and up to two for a heart, it is only through the selfless gift of donation that people are given a second chance at life. According to the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS), more than 100,000 Americans currently await a life-saving organ transplant with 18 people dying each day due to the shortage of donated organs.
What You Can Do
There are many ways you can ensure that your wish to donate is honored:
* Sign up with the Colorado Donor Registry or Wyoming Donor Registry
* Say 'Yes' when obtaining or renewing your driver’s license at the Department of Motor Vehicles
* Sign a donor card
* Inform your family about your decision to be a donor
* Include your wishes in your living will
* It is estimated that 50 to 60 million Americans have registered their decision to be an organ and tissue donor. Have you?
For more information on becoming a Donor Alliance Volunteer,
please contact Jennifer Lange at (303) 370-2757.
The Myths and Facts of Organ And Tissue DonationMany myths exist about organ and tissue donation. These are largely due to certain values people have been raised with, religious beliefs or fears about what you “hear on the street” or see in movies. We want to provide you with factual information about donation, so you can make an educated decision to become a registered donor.
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Myth: There are certain things that can keep me from being an organ donor such as age, illness or physical defects.
Fact:
Each person’s medical condition is evaluated at the time of their death to determine what organs and tissues are viable for donation. People living with chronic diseases or those who have a history of cancer or other serious diseases are still encouraged to join the donor registry.
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Myth: If doctors know that I am registered to be an organ or tissue donor, they won’t work as hard to save my life.
Fact:
The first priority of a medical professional is to save lives when sick or injured people come to the hospital. Organ and tissue donation isn’t even considered or discussed until after death is declared.
Typically, doctors and nurses involved in a person’s care before death are not involved in the recovery or transplantation of donated corneas, organs or tissues.
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Myth: If you are rich or a celebrity, you can move up the waiting list more quickly.
Fact:
Severity of illness, time spent waiting, blood type and match potential are the factors that determine your place on the waiting list. A patient’s income, race or social status are never taken into account in the allocation process.
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Myth: After donating an organ or tissue, a closed casket funeral is the only option.
Fact:
Donor Alliance treats each donor with the utmost respect and dignity, allowing a donor’s body to be viewed in an open casket funeral.
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Myth: My religion doesn’t support organ and tissue donation.
Fact:
Most major religions support organ and tissue donation. Typically, religions view organ and tissue donation as acts of charity and goodwill. Donor Alliance urges you to discuss organ and tissue donation with your spiritual advisor if you have concerns on this issue.
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Myth: My family will be charged for donating my organs.
Fact:
Costs associated with recovering and processing organs and tissues for transplant are never passed on to the donor family. The family may be expected to pay for medical expenses incurred before death is declared and for expenses involving funeral arrangements.
