Donate Life
Did you know that April is National Donate Life Month? The month is dedicated to spreading awareness about organ, eye, and tissue donation and transplantation.
We all know it’s important to consider being an organ donor, but these facts prove just HOW important it is!
114,000+ men, women, and children are currently on the national transplant list
Every 10 minutes another person is added to the waiting list
Over 36,000 transplants were performed in 2018
20 people die each day waiting for a transplant
And for me personally, the most shocking stat is that one donor can save eight lives. Yes, eight!
Anyone can become an organ donor, no matter your age or background. At the time of your death, medical professionals will determine what organs and tissue can be donated. You can also declare what type of donation you would like, but should be sure to disclose that with family and friends as well as when you enroll in your state’s donor registry.
There are several types of organ transplants, all of which give hope to thousands of people with organ failure.
Living donation- Some organs and tissues can be donated with a living donor, such as liver or kidney. Most living donations occur within a family or between a close friend. However, a living donor can be a stranger.
Deceased donation- Deceased organ, tissue, or eye donation is the process of giving an organ(s) or part of an organ(s), eye, or tissue at the time of your death to another person.
Vascularized Composite Allografts (VCA)- these transplantations involve multiple structures that include skin, bone, muscles, blood vessels, nerves, and connective tissues. The most common VCA transplants are for the hand and face.
Pediatric donation- these transplants differ slightly because the size of the organ size is critical for the transplant to be successful, most children respond better with child sized organs.
What organs can tissue can be transplanted?
· Liver
· Kidney
· Pancreas
· Heart
· Lung
· Intestine
· Cornea
· Middle ear
· Skin
· Bone
· Bone marrow
· Heart valves
· Connective tissue
· Vascularized composite allografts
95% of Americans support being a donor, but only 58% are registered. If you are one of those people, you can get registered here. If you are just Interested in learning more about organ donation, check out this page for some interesting facts!
Here at Extract, we understand the importance organ donation has on a person, a family, and a community. We have been working hard to provide an automated data extraction solution to transplant centers. Extract’s HealthyData Platform routes incoming documents from outside sources with numerous patient data points to be sent into the EMR, where the clinicians want the data. Those data points are necessary for efficient and accurate patient care. Reach out today to learn more about how we are helping in both UW Health and UVA’s transplant centers or stop by our booth at UNOS TMF 2019 in May.
