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What You Should Know About Organ Donation
- As a result of COVID-19 donation is down about 35% across the U.S.
- People of color suffer disproportionally from COVID-19 and also from diseases that ultimately lead to needing an organ transplant, specifically a kidney transplant.
- More than half of the 113,000 people waiting for a life-saving organ transplant in the U.S. are people of color in need of kidney transplant.
- Many transplant programs across the U.S. were suspended due to COVID-19 and the necessity of having more ICU beds available to treat COVID-19 patients. Those programs are gradually returning, but the suspension of those programs caused many patients to not receive a transplant, primarily those waiting for kidney and liver transplants.
- Each day 22 people die waiting for a life-saving transplant.
- Patients currently waiting and those that have received transplants are some of the most susceptible to COVID-19 because there’re immune systems are compromised.
- Living donation is an optimum way to help another person in need of a kidney transplant. Other organs that can potentially come from a living donor are the lung and a portion of liver as it does regenerate.
- People interested in living donation should contact the transplant programs at: Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, University of Cincinnati Medical Center or The Christ Hospital Health Network for more information.
- Patients who have COVID-19 and pass away cannot be donors.
Some Important Facts About Donation:
- Individuals who are donors CAN HAVE an open casket funeral.
- All major religions support donation as a final act of giving.
- A medical professionals only responsibility is to save a patient’s life. Donation IS NOT discussed until death has been declared.
For more information, get the facts about organ, eye and tissue donation or to register, please visit Lifepassiton.org today.