701-418-8000
Established in 2003, National Donate Life Month is observed in April and helps encourage Americans to register as organ, eye and tissue donors and honor those who saved lives through the gift of donation.
Twenty people die each day waiting for a transplant. One donor can heal more than 75 lives through eye and tissue donation; or save up to eight lives through organ donation. Registering to be a donor can be as easy as checking a box on your driver’s license application. However, only one percent of people meet the criteria that allows one to donate.
Types of Donation
Deceased organ donation is the process of giving an organ, or part of an organ, at the time of the donor’s death for the purpose of transportation to another person. At the end of your life, you can give life to others.
To become an organ donor, blood and oxygen must flow through the organs until the time of recovery to ensure viability. This requires that a person die under circumstances that have resulted in a fatal brain injury, usually from massive trauma resulting in bleeding, swelling or lack of oxygen to the brain.
Only after all efforts to save the patient’s life have been exhausted, tests have been performed to confirm the absence of brain or brainstem activity, and brain death has been declared, is donation a possibility.
Living organ donation offers another choice for some transplant candidates, reducing time on the waiting list and leading to better long-term outcomes. Living tissue donation, birth tissue, is used to promote healing and treat burns and painful wounds.
Living organ donation was developed as a direct result of the critical shortage of deceased donors. A living donor is an option for patients who otherwise may face a lengthy wait for an organ from a deceased donor. To spare an individual a long and uncertain wait, relatives, loved ones, friends and even individuals who wish to remain anonymous may serve as living donors. On average, 1 in 4 living donors are not biologically related to the recipient.
Between 2014 and 2019, the number of living donor kidney transplants in the U.S. increased 24 percent and the number of living donor liver transplants climbed 87.1 percent, according to data from the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network. A living organ donation may save two lives: patients who receive a living donor transplant are removed from the national transplant waiting list, making the gift of a deceased donor kidney or liver available for someone else in need.
If you are considering being a living donor, it’s important to note that living donation is not included in your deceased donor registration.
Pediatric transplants differ slightly from other organ donations — as organ size is critical to a successful transplant, children often respond better to child-sized organs. There are currently 1,900 children under the age of 18 waiting for a variety of organs, and more than 25 percent of them are under 5 years old. While pediatric donors range in age from newborns to 17, most are between 11 and 17 years old — though in 2020, more than 120 pediatric organ donors were babies under the age of 12 months.
Vascularized Composite Allografts (VCAs) involve the transplantation of multiple structures that may include skin, bone, muscles, blood vessels, nerves and connective tissue. The most commonly known type of VCAs are for hand and face transplants. This groundbreaking form of therapy returns vital function and identity to people who have suffered a devastating injury or illness. VCA requires a specific authorization, separate from a standard donor registration. Authorization for VCA is never assumed as part of a registration to be an organ, eye and tissue donor. VCA authorization must be specifically stated by an individual on his/her donor registration or by the legal next-of-kin if authorizing the donation at the time of death.
Rituals of Honor
When it’s been determined that a patient at Trinity Hospital no longer shows signs of brain function, a care team is available to assist the family with decisions about their loved one. The team consists of a LifeSource coordinator, in charge of organ transportation; Pastoral Care; and a nursing supervisor. If the patient’s driver’s license or advanced directive indicate they are a donor, and they are an adult, the decision to donate is honored. If the patient is a minor, organ/tissue donation is a discretionary decision made by the legal next-of-kin.
Regardless of donor designation, the process can be emotionally difficult for survivors. “When the donor is an adult, our job as chaplains is to support the family as they grieve for their loved one, and as difficult as it is, help them find value in this final act of generosity,” said the Rev. Sylvester Onyeachonam, director of pastoral services. “When the patient is a minor, the family is mourning a death, but also is faced with the decision of donation. It is like a double layer of grief. The chaplain will discuss the possibility of organ donation and its value, while at the same time affirm their sorrow. The chaplain’s role is to support the family, regardless of the outcome.”
Donate Life Flag Raising: If the family consents, Trinity Health will conduct a flag raising ceremony in honor of the gift of life. The Trinity flag is lowered, and a Donate Life flag is raised on the hospital canopy roof and flies until the donation process is complete, or a minimum of 24 hours.
“The Flag Raising ceremony is a ritual that acknowledges the transfer of the gift of life from one person to another. It is in this context that a prayer is said for all involved,” said Onyeachonam.
The family can choose to attend and has the option of having an announcement made throughout the hospital so others can attend. The flag is lowered when the donation process is complete.
Walk of Honor: An Honor Walk is a quiet, yet profound and powerful way to give a hero’s goodbye and honor a gift that will save and enhance the lives of many. When the organ procurement team has determined the time for the patient to be transported to the operating room, Trinity staff line the hallway on the second floor of the main hospital and bow their heads in honor of the person donating life through organ donation, as the transport team travels down the corridor. Family and friends of the patient may participate if they wish to do so.
“The Walk of Honor is a time for loved ones to bid their final farewell,” Onyeachonam said. “It is their last opportunity to touch or stroke or kiss a loved one good bye, as the patient is being wheeled out of ICU to the OR. Due to the nature of relationships in critical care, this can also be a time of sorrow for many of the staff who served as caregivers to the patient. This activity is deeply emotional, reverent and prayerful.”
How You Can Become an Organ Donor
1. Due to recent law changes, you no longer are required to go to a Driver License Testing site to change your designation nor is it required to be printed on your driver license, permit or identification card. To change your donor registration in the North Dakota driver license database, visit https://apps.nd.gov/dot. Once you have completed the registry, you will receive a confirmation letter of your new donor designation. In the case of a minor (under 18 years old) the letter will be addressed to the “Parent or Guardian of.”
2. Check the box on your driver’s license application when renewing or applying at the license center.
3. Register as a donor on your iPhone. Sign up to be a donor in the Health App of any Apple mobile device like your iPhone or iPad. When registering, your device will give you the option to share your medical information for emergency access to designated emergency contacts or emergency services.
