Information
- Category:
- Organizations -
- Description:
- Did you know 18 people die needlessly each day because there are not enough organ donors in this country?
YOU have the power to change that. Just one person can save up to eight lives by being an organ donor. All you have to do:
1. Register your intentions to donate at http://www.donatelifetexas.org If you live outside Texas, go to http://www.donatelife.net
2. Talk to your family about your decision.
3. Spread the word! You can be a hero today.
We've created this group to increase... (read more) - Privacy Type:
- Open: All content is public.
Admins
- Michelle (creator)
Officers
- Michelle
- Senior Communications Coordinator
- Shante
- Hospital Services Coordinator
Events
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- Donate Life Texas Day at the C...
Capitol Grill at the Texas State Ca...
Thursday, March 26 at 10:00am
Basic Info
- Name:
- DONATE LIFE TEXAS
- Category:
- Organizations -
- Description:
- Did you know 18 people die needlessly each day because there are not enough organ donors in this country?
YOU have the power to change that. Just one person can save up to eight lives by being an organ donor. All you have to do:
1. Register your intentions to donate at http://www.donatelifetexas.org If you live outside Texas, go to http://www.donatelife.net
2. Talk to your family about your decision.
3. Spread the word! You can be a hero today.
We've created this group to increase... (read more) - Privacy Type:
- Open: All content is public.
Contact Info
- Email:
- msegovia@txorgansharing.org
- Website:
- http://www.txorgansharing.org/
- Office:
- Texas Organ Sharing Alliance
- Location:
- Austin, TX
Recent News
- News:
- Hillcrest Baptist Medical Center unveils 'Tree of Life' to honor organ donors
By Cindy V. Culp Tribune-Herald staff writer
Thursday, August 13, 2009
Organ donation advocates unveiled an artistic tribute to local residents who have given the gift of life to others during a ceremony at Hillcrest Baptist Medical Center on Wednesday.
The 3-D wall sculpture, dubbed the “Tree of Life,” features the names of local residents who have been organ donors during the past 10 years. As other local residents become donors in the future, their names will be added, officials said. The sculpture is located in the hospital’s dining area.
The tribute, which was paid for by Hillcrest’s foundation, is a joint project of Hillcrest and the Texas Organ Sharing Alliance. The alliance is the official organ procurement organization for Central Texas and facilitates organ donation after a donor’s death.
Leigh Kackley, a local teacher who received a liver donation 6 1/2 years ago, said she is glad there is now public recognition of the gift donors and their loved ones have given to others.
“I want you to know your gift of life is never not appreciated,” Kackley, 47, said to donors’ family members who attended the ceremony. “You are always appreciated, always loved. You need to know that you are always remembered.”
Carl Woodruff said he plans to visit the sculpture from time to time in honor of his son, Aaron. The 18-year-old China Spring student died last year, and his family decided to donate his organs. They provided lifesaving help to six people, Woodruff said.
“Seeing the big picture of Aaron’s donation and how he has helped others has given us some comfort,” he said.
Also during the ceremony, Hillcrest was presented with National Donor Medals of Honor. They are reserved for hospitals that have an organ-donation consent rate of 75 percent or greater from eligible donors. During 2007 and 2008, Hillcrest’s consent rate averaged 78 percent, officials said.
The award comes from the U.S. Health and Human Services Department. Only 417 of the more than 45,000 private hospitals in the nation received the honor for this latest award period, which is a 26-month time frame that ended in May 2008, alliance officials said.
“That’s the top 10 percent at least, and it’s right here in Waco,” said Patrick Giordano, CEO of the alliance. “You have something to be proud of.”
The award is particularly significant for Hillcrest, officials said, because in 2004 and 2005, its donor consent rate was a dismal 41 percent. The national average is 60 to 65 percent.
Troubled by the low rate, the alliance and Hillcrest officials convened a special team to review how they approached the process of organ donation. The resulting teamwork is what helped dramatically increase the consent rate, officials said.
“We’ve come such a long way,” Wells said.
Still, officials urged local residents not only to decide to become organ donors in the event of their deaths but also to share that wish with their families. Nationwide, there are more than 102,000 people on a waiting list for transplants, including more than 9,000 Texans.
“There are people who die every day on the waiting list,” Giordano said.
cculp@wacotrib.com
Home > Salud
Organ donation remains flat in Central Texas and donor registration is fairly low
By Mary Ann Roser | Wednesday, February 25, 2009, 11:43 AM
Have you had “the talk” with your loved ones?
I’m referring to what you want done with your organs should you have a bad accident or end up brain dead in a hospital. Not a happy thought, but families who have donated organs have been consoled to think some good has come from tragedy.
About 65 percent of those who can donate say yes, but the number of Central and South Texas families agreeing to donate a loved ones’ organs after death remains flat. That’s despite the region’s growing population and the increasing need for transplants, numbers released today show.
Just 115 families gave organs, and while those donations helped 390 people in 2008, the number of donor families was down slightly from 119 families in 2007, according to the Texas Organ Sharing Alliance, which serves this region.
I asked Michelle Segovia, a spokeswoman for the alliance, why these numbers hardly move from one year to the next. “So many family members don’t know what their loved ones wanted,” she said.
It’s ironic, she added, because the alliance’s surveys and a national Gallup poll in 2006 showed that nine out of 10 people think organ donation is a good idea.
More than 8,000 Texans are waiting for organs to have life-saving transplants, Segovia said. They are among 100,000 nationally, but because organs are in such short supply, 18 die each day while they wait.
“They’re needlessly dying,” she said.
She encouraged people to register with donation registries and tell their families. In Texas, just 300,000 people have registered at the site, and Segovia suspects many people don’t know about the importance of registering.
Just a small percentage of people are eligible for organ donation, probably less than 5 percent, Segovia said. They must be brain-dead in a hospital and on a ventilator, she said. The window to obtain the organs is short. Segovia recommends telling a loved one today — and taking a few minutes to register.