August 1 is National Minority Donor Awareness Day. According to the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS), minorities represent half of all people currently waiting for an organ donation. Rachel Asbury, LMSW, social worker in the Family Support Program at University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, talks about organ donation:
Who can be a donor?
Really anyone can. There are certain medical criteria. They have to be evaluated to make sure that an infection or disease isn't passed to the recipient. All donations take place after someone has passed away. So really, at the time of death, anyone can be an organ or tissue donor.
Why is it important for minorities to donate organs?
The national waiting list for a solid organ is disproportionately filled with minorities. As of July of 2007, there are over a total of 99,000 individuals waiting for a solid organ in the nation. Many of the conditions leading to a need for transplant, such as diabetes, occur with greater frequency in minority populations.
For example, African-Americans, Asians, Hispanic Latinos, and Pacific Islander Americans are three times more likely to suffer from kidney failure than Americans of European descent. And, successful transplantation is often enhanced if organs are matched between members of the same ethnic and racial group. So a shortage of those organs donated by minorities can contribute to a longer waiter period for transplants, so really, it does make a difference.
What organs can be donated?
You can donate your heart, your lungs, liver, kidneys, pancreas, and small bowel. By splitting your lungs and your kidneys, one organ donor can save up to eight lives. Truly, organ donation is a huge gift and does save lives for those on the national waiting list. Currently in Iowa, there are 479 individuals waiting for a solid organ.
What are some tissues that can be donated?
It depends on your age and your medical criteria, but you can donate:
- Eyes or corneas
- Heart, which is used for valve donation
- Bones and associated tissues
- Skin as well as veins
On average, a full tissue donor can help around 50 individuals. So you really do help a number of individuals by donating tissues after you die.
What happens when people donate organs and tissues?
For the donation process to occur, families are contacted by the Iowa Donor Network about their loved one's opportunity to donate and the impact their decision will make. The family then completes the required paperwork, including informed consent and questions about their loved one's medical history.
The Iowa Donor Network team works with the patient on medical management and the allocation of organs before going to the operating room. Organ and tissue donations are both surgical procedures that are completed by transplant surgeons for organ donation and by trained recovery staff for tissue donation. The recoveries do take place in the hospital operating room or recovery suite. The organs are then transplanted within a short period of time and tissues are sent to be processed and to transplant on tissues that surgeons can then use.
Does the ethnic group of the donor or recipient play a role in matching organs? Why?
The ethnic group is not necessarily an important factor. However, patients on the national waiting list are more likely to find well-matched organs within their own racial or ethnic group. Currently about 74 percent of U.S. donors are Caucasian. Therefore, if there were more minority donors, the minority recipients would have a better chance at getting transplanted. Although families cannot designate a specific minority group to donate to, organs are allocated on the basis of who is sickest and who is the best match. So it does make some difference.
Will my decision to donate cost my family anything?
No, definitely not. Donation does not have a monetary cost for families. Donation is a humanitarian gift to help others, so the Organ Procurement Organization—or here in Iowa it's the Iowa Donor Network—pays the costs associated with recovery of organs and tissues for their donors.
Can anyone be a "living" donor?
Yes, living donation is when you donate to someone before you die. So you can donate blood, bone marrow, and even an organ that you can spare like your kidneys, one of your lungs, or a segment of your liver. You can be a living-related donor or an unrelated-living donor. Anyone in good health can be screened to see if they are a living donor candidate. Living donation is an alternative to deceased organ donation since there are so many individuals waiting for a solid organ.
How can you become a donor?
We encourage people to have a verbal conversation and let their wishes be known to their family, so they can refer to that in the event of a crisis. We certainly encourage people—if you're getting your getting license—to let the Department of Transportation know you would like to be an organ or tissue donor so they can put a 'Y' on your license.
The problem is, many people arrive at the hospital without their license due to a car accident or rushing away from the home in a crisis. In Iowa, as in many states, we have a registry. It's at www.IowaDonorRegistry.org , where people can register to be an organ or tissue donor. You can also call 877-366-6742 to register to be a donor. That's very helpful. It takes the burden away from your family because it's available to medical staff 24-hours a day. The Registry then faxes a copy of your consent and your family is relieved of having to make that decision. |
