Be An Organ Donor

If someone told you that you could save a life, or improve the lives of several people, would you do it?

Consider being an organ donor.

How does a person become a donor?

• Register with a State Donor Registry by going to  http://www.organdonor.gov/becomingdonor/index.html  
• Designate that you are a donor on your driver's license
• Carry a signed donor card from OrganDonor.gov
• Put it in writing so that it is clear what you want
• Tell your family of your wishes-if they don't know, the organs may not be donated
• If you are under 18, you can tell your wishes to donate to your parents or guardians and they will pass that along if you should die

You can go into a DMV office any time and fill out a short form indicating that you want to donate your organs, or the next time your drivers license is up for renewal, fill it out then. Your license card will look like this:

Take a look at the waiting list for donors needed (gray line) and the number of actual donors (green line)....

 

 

• Did you know that there are almost 124,000 people waiting for an organ to be donated?
• 18 people will die every day because they didn't have a donor
• There are 2500 heart transplants done every day, and it could be more if there were enough donors
• One organ donor can save up to 8 lives
• More than 100 million people have signed up to become donors

 

 

What can be donated??

 

Whole organs, such as the heart, kidney, liver, lungs, intestine, and pancreas: There is research taking place in Type 1 Diabetes that uses the pancreas.

 

Tissues, including bone, cartilage, cornea, fascia, heart valves, ligaments, pericardium (heart lining), tendons, veins, and skin for grafting are all needed.

 

 

 

 

Bone marrow and blood can be donated by living donors. Learn about it here:

 http://bethematch.org/Support-the-Cause/Donate-bone-marrow/Donation-FAQs/

 

 

 

 

 

 Here are some common myths about organ donation explained by the Mayo Clinic: http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-living/consumer-health/in-depth/organ-donation/art-20047529?pg=1