April is a time where life is nurtured. Plants are sprouting, the air is getting warmer, and the world seems to come alive again. It’s also a good time for us to consider how we can nurture lives ourselves. One easy way to do this is by becoming an organ donor.
April is National Donate Life Month, a month dedicated to bringing awareness to the importance of registering to become an organ, eye, and tissue donor. Donate Life America, a nonprofit alliance of local coalitions and national organizations founded in 1992, manages the National Donate Life Registry and provides education to the public about living donation and donor registration. In 2003, April was established as National Donate Life month by Donate Life America and its partner organizations.
According to Donate Life America, a single organ, eye, and tissue donor can save more than 75 lives. Registering to donate is incredibly important, as every nine minutes, a person is added to the waiting list. Currently, there are 300 people waiting for an organ transplant in Nebraska, the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) states.
“Becoming a donor gives someone the chance to help others in the most selfless way,” Box Butte General Hospital Dialysis Manager Shana Marsteller said. “It also gives those in need of a transplant a second chance at life. Since I have been here, there have been three dialysis patients that have had a kidney transplant. They were able to get back to living a healthy life and be with their families and children.”
At BBGH patients, such as those receiving dialysis, get referred to a transplant center of their choice when they need an organ transplant. According to Marsteller, one of the nurses in dialysis serves as an in-between for patients and the centers.
Anyone over the age of 16, regardless of their current medical history, can register to be a potential donor. At the time of death, a donor’s medical condition will be evaluated to see what organs and tissues can be donated. From there, a national system matches available organs with people on the waiting list based on blood type, tissue type, body size, recipient’s time on the list, donor distance, and how sick the recipient is. Donation is free for the donor’s family.
To register to become an organ, eye, and tissue donor, visit https://registerme.org. If you are unsure if you are already a registered donor, look for a heart symbol at the bottom of your driver’s license.