Make a Resolution to Save Lives
We have the best intentions to do more and be better when a new year approaches. We make grand plans: lose weight, take on that home renovation or give back to the community. Often, we struggle to find ways to follow through.
The same goes for registering as an organ and tissue donor. More than 94 percent of Ohioans think that donation is a good thing, but only about 54 percent have taken the steps to register.
Why the gap between sentiment and action? Myths and misconceptions prevent Ohioans from signing up as donors.
The most common misconception about donation is the fear that a registered donor’s care will be compromised in the emergency room. This is completely untrue. A doctor’s main priority is the life in front of them and only after every effort to save a patient’s life has failed is donation considered.
Donors can rest assured that the heart on their license is just a visual reminder that they have registered, it is not how one’s status as a donor is determined. After death has been declared, an organ procurement organization is contacted to determine if that person has the potential to donate organs or tissues. That organization then checks a person’s status in the Ohio Donor Registry, a database that doctors cannot access.
Another common myth about donation is the thought that a donor cannot have an open-casket funeral. If an open-casket funeral was possible before donation, it will still be possible after donation.
We also see a trend of people eliminating themselves from the Ohio Donor Registry when they reach a certain age, fearing that their organs won’t be of use. Don’t rule yourself out as a donor! The oldest donor on record was 92 and saved a life by donating his liver. You never know whose life you could save or impact by being a donor so let the medical professionals determine what can be donated at the time of your death.
These are just some of the misconceptions that Ohioans have about donation. If you have a question about donation or a fear that is holding you back from registering, learn the facts!
Make a resolution to save lives and turn sentiment into action in 2011 – register as an organ and tissue donor. By taking five minutes to sign up in the Ohio Donor Registry, you have the potential to save eight lives and impact up to 50 more. You will give hope to the 110,000 Americans waiting for a life-saving transplant and feel good knowing you’ve started your year by making a big impact!
To sign up: click here, call 800-525-5667 to request an enrollment form or say “yes” when asked to be a donor at the BMV.
Happy New Year!
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