Donate Life Day

Donate Life Day at the Capitol

Thu, 13 Jan 2011 10:12:00 -0600

SAVE THE DATE:
Donate Life Day at the Capitol is Tuesday, March 1 at 9am in the Capitol Grill. More details coming soon…

Grand Rapids editor features daisy chains

Tue, 22 Dec 2009 09:07:19 -0600

Grand Rapids editor features daisy chains:

The concept of NEAD (non-smultaneous extended altruistic donor chains) is explored in today’s editorial.

Congratulations to Donate Life Ohio

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 16:46:09 -0600

Donate Life Ohio’s Do It Now! Campaign won the prestigious Best Advocacy Campaign in the National PR News Nonprofit Awards at the Press Club in Washington DC last week! The campaign is funded through Ohio’s Second Chance Trust Fund, in which Ohioans contribute dollar donations at the Bureau of Motor Vehicles when renewing their vehicle tags.

Over a two-year period, the team rolled out the “Do It Now!” Challenge, targeting students at 30 colleges and universities and more than 250 companies throughout Ohio.

Designed as a competition to bring together colleges strategically located throughout the state, the program pitted students against each other to see who would be the most successful in increasing the number of registered donors in their region. Executed over the course of two academic school years, each student team was treated as an “agency” hired by Donate Life Ohio to bring the campaign to life. As a result, each school was empowered to plan and execute their own activities, which included 5K runs, balloon launches, flash mobs and YouTube videos.

Thanks to the team’s strategy of creating pockets of advocates who could lead their own efforts, the campaign’s results were far-reaching. The goal of adding 480,000 new donors to the registry over the two-year period was surpassed, with a total of 500,182 new organ and tissue donor registrations.

This is the second consecutive year that this campaign has won a national award.
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Editor’s note - perhaps we should try this in Texas. With UT and Texas A&M alone we could get some major rivalry going!

Happy Birthday to Dr. Clive Callender, Founder of MOTTEP!

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 07:56:55 -0600

Happy Birthday to Dr. Clive Callender, Founder of MOTTEP!:

Transplant surgeon, Dr. Clive Callender, turned 73 this week. Callender founded MOTTEP in 1991 to increase the number of minority organ and tissue donors.

“”…his efforts have led to a dramatic increase in organ donation in the minority community. The increase of organ donation in the minority community went from 15 percent to 25 percent, and he’s attempting to get it to 30 percent by 2010.”
Callender, who earlier this year performed a kidney transplant on D.C. Councilman Marion Barry, said he is happy to lend his name, and age, to help MOTTEP.

Minneapolis Star Trib article on kidney failure

Fri, 02 Oct 2009 08:34:49 -0500

Minneapolis Star Trib article on kidney failure:

This is part 3 of an in-depth article on kidney failure and paired exchanges.

Lone Star Circle of Life Tour to promote organ/marrow donation

Thu, 01 Oct 2009 10:00:26 -0500

I am posting a message from Texas Transplant Society member Bryan Rollins, because he covers all thr bases concerning the Circle of Life ride. Please support this cause if you can. Go Bryan!!

This Friday (10/2), I will join the Lone Star Circle of Life Team for a ride across Texas, covering 650 miles and meeting hundreds of Texans. The ride starts from Houston Saturday morning, and ends in San Antonio on October 10th. I’m incredibly excited about seeing my teammates, and getting to spend some time on my bike, but mostly I’m excited to meet all the amazing people in each city. Last year, meeting organ donors, organ recipients, marrow donors, marrow recipients, organ donor families, and lifetime blood donors whose efforts are measured in tens of gallons, was awe inspiring. Every day reminded me of how lucky I am to be healthy, and of the amazing gift of life that I was given in 2004 by my cousin Diane.

If you’d like to attend, the local events are:

10/3. Houston, 8:30 AM
10/3, Bryan/College Station, 5 PM
10/4, Crockett, 5:30 PM
10/5, Tyler, 3 PM
10/6, Dallas, 3:30 PM
10/7, Waco, 3:30 PM
10/8, Salado, 3:30 PM
10/9, Austin, 3 PM
10/10, San Antonio, 2 PM

More details on each event, location, etc can be found at: http://www.sw.org/web/patientsAndVisitors/iwcontent/public/biketour/en_us/html/biketour_localevents.html
I’ll write every night of the ride, and take pictures, and will post it all on: http://bryanjrollins.livejournal.com
A couple of you asked for the URL to donate and join “Bryan’s team.” It’s http://www.tinyurl.com/lonestarbjr

And most importantly, please consider joining the registries for organ donation and marrow donation, and tell your friends and family about your decision. We’ve had a great year in Texas - with new legislation to help make organ donor registration easier, new medical discoveries, paired donation, chained donation, and many wonderful stories. But we’ve also lost people near and dear to us because of the lack of marrow donors and organ donors.

Front page news...

Wed, 02 Sep 2009 11:50:00 -0500

Online registry eases organ donation setup

Patti Steele Special to the Reporter-News
Tuesday, September 1, 2009

A new state law making it easier to register online to become an organ or tissue donor should greatly increase the number of donors, a donor advocate said Tuesday.

The law, which went into effect Tuesday, allows people to enroll in the online donor registry giving only an electronic signature.

Previously, donors had to mail in their registration with two witness signatures to validate their decision.

The law also changes the question people will be asked when applying for driver’s licenses. Previously, prospective donors were asked: “In the event of your death would you like to make an anatomical gift.”

“Most people said ‘no,” said Pam Silvestri, director of communications for Southwest Transplant Alliance in Dallas, which coordinates transplants in the Abilene area. “First they bring up death and many people don’t know what an anatomical gift is. The question sounds like it was written by an attorney.”

Now people will be asked simply: “Would you like to register to be an organ donor,” Silvestri said. “We’re hoping most people say yes,” she said. “I think we’ll see a dramatic increase in the number of organ donors.”

Texas has a statewide donor registry program operated by the Texas Department of State Health Services. The Glenda Dawson Donate Life Texas registry is available at www.donatelifetexas.org. Southwest and other regional donor organizations use the registry to locate donors.

Both Abilene Regional Medical Center and Hendrick Medical Center work with Southwest Transplant Alliance to coordinate donors and recipients.

The Glenda Dawson registry is named in memory of State Rep. Glenda Dawson’s work in getting a donor, education, awareness and registry program in Texas, according to the donor Web site. The law creating the registry went into effect in September 2006 and was re-named for Dawson in 2007.

The registry is funded by a $1 contribution that Texans can make when applying for or renewing their driver’s license or identification card, or when registering their vehicle. Nationwide, there are about 102,670 people on waiting lists for organs. In Texas, they number 9,326, according to the Texas Department of State Health Services Web site.

The majority in Texas — 7,096 — are awaiting kidney transplants followed by 1,660 awaiting liver transplants. In 2007, nearly 500 people in Texas died waiting for organ transplants.

“Before the Texas registry there was no official, centralized list of people who wanted to give consent to being donors,” according to the Web site. “The Web-based registry helps streamline the donation process at a time when medical decisions and procedures must happen quickly.”

- Register to be an organ and tissue donor today.
www.donatelifetexas.org

Advocates Work to Bridge Minority Organ Donor Gap

Sun, 02 Aug 2009 19:40:49 -0500

Advocates Work to Bridge Minority Organ Donor Gap:

Today (August 1) is National Minority Donor Day, when national organ donor officials and those with Dallas’ Southwest Transplant Alliance specifically ask minorities to donate organs at rates that reflect their numbers on the waiting list.

Because organs, most often kidneys, are matched with medical compatibility, minorities awaiting kidney transplants have a better success rate if the organ donor is the same ethnicity.

“Our numbers are up for Hispanic donors in Texas,” said Pam Silvestri, STA’s public affairs director. “We started bringing in bilingual representatives to talk to families that have lost a loved one.”

But she said similar success was not achieved when the same tactic was used with black families. (Read full story by clicking on headline)

News story about APD donor and recipient

Sat, 04 Jul 2009 23:18:01 -0500

News story about APD donor and recipient :

The night before Linda Parisi was scheduled to give one of her kidneys to her husband, she learned his body would not take it…So, Linda and Wayne Parisi, who live in Madison, immediately entered a paired kidney exchange. Read the full story on this recipient’s celebration of Independence Day - independence from dialysis, that is.

Texas Transplantation Society Annual Scientific Meeting July 23-26; Hotel deadline today!

Wed, 01 Jul 2009 09:36:09 -0500

Texas Transplantation Society Annual Scientific Meeting July 23-26; Hotel deadline today!:

The meeting is already accredited for physicians (13 hrs Category I) and credits are pending for laboratory staff through ABHI and for transplant coordinators through ABTC (17 hrs.)

"My Sister’s Keeper Donation Storyline: 13 year old daughter, Anna, conceived to provide bone..."

Tue, 30 Jun 2009 15:59:27 -0500

“My Sister’s Keeper Donation Storyline: 13 year old daughter, Anna, conceived to provide bone marrow transplant for her cancer (leukemia) stricken sister, finally rebels and sues parents for her medical emancipation when they try to next make her a living kidney donor in efforts to save her older sister’s life yet again. Key points:

· It is impossible for someone under the age of 18 to be a living kidney donor, which means the fundamental premise of the book and film is flawed. A minor would never be in a position to be told by her parents to donate a kidney.

· When telling her parents that she does not want to be a donor, Anna uses the argument that she wants to live a “normal” life, play sports and not have to “be careful” all the time. In reality, living donors go on to lead very normal and healthy lives. While transplant recipients may be encouraged not to engage in contact sports, this is not usually a requirement for the living donor.

· Anna has many concerns about being a living donor. In reality living donors feel very positive about their gift. Kathleen Hostert, who donated a kidney to her husband, shares the common sentiment among living kidney donors: “The opportunity to literally save someone’s life through kidney donation is a true blessing and nothing short of a miracle. The gift I was able to give to my husband 11 years ago has truly been a blessing as a wife and a mother. To see him healthy again and able enjoy our children gives me an overwhelming sense of love and feelings I cannot explain. I have been truly honored to have been able to do this for him and our family. There was never any doubt or hesitation to give to this gift to him. I wouldn’t change a thing.”

Analysis: My Sister’s Keeper is a heart wrenching tale about a family facing the death of a loved one. While the film does not perpetuate any of the harmful myths and misconceptions that keep people from registering as an organ donor, it also does not leave audiences with a feeling that “organ donation is a good thing.””

- Tenaya Wallace
Campaign Director, Donate Life Hollywood

UNOS Board Addresses Liver Allocation

Wed, 24 Jun 2009 16:31:40 -0500

UNOS Board Addresses Liver Allocation:

The UNOS (United Network for Organ Sharing) board met on June 22-23 and adopted changes to the liver allocation policy.

Steve Jobs' Transplant Raises Issue of Geographic Disparity

Wed, 24 Jun 2009 10:09:14 -0500

It is now being reported on cnn.com that Jobs did, indeed, receive his liver transplant in Tennessee - at Methodist Hospital in Memphis, to be specific. Tennessee has one of the shortest wait times in the country, so it is logical that an individual with resources to travel would go where there is a short wait time, good outcomes, etc. Similarly, in Texas, there are parts of our state where waiting time is shorter than other locations. This means that someone willing and able to travel can get listed (multiply listed, if desired) where the wait may be shorter. It’s too complicated to go into the history of how our state is divided up here, but the fact is, geographic disparities do still exist. And probably always will. The message for potential recipients, I think, is - do your homework. If you have the resources to travel, you can figure out where the waiting times are shorter. And the take home message for everyone else - if we had more organs donated, patients wouldn’t have to be worried about trying to find the center with the shortest waiting times. Please encourage everyone you know to sign up to be a donor at www.donatelifetexas.net. (If you’re not in Texas, go to www.shareyourlife.org to find your state’s registry.) (These opinions are those of Laurie Reece, not necessarily the opinion of either the Texas Transplantation Society nor the Alliance for Paired Donation.)

Good news for some Florida transplant candidates

Mon, 22 Jun 2009 08:53:25 -0500

The Fort Myers News-press.com reported this bit of good news on June 11, 2009: TALLAHASSEE - Hundreds of Floridians will be able to get kidney transplants without losing all their assets after Gov. Charlie Crist Wednesday signed into a law extending insurance eligibility to patients. The law extends coverage to patients with End-Stage Renal Disease and also to the disabled. Beginning in October, they can get Medigap coverage, insurance that supplements Medicare protection for those 65 and older. Without the new law, those under 65 would have to expend all their assets to become eligible for government help. It’s estimated 2,000 Floridians who do not have the gap insurance will now be eligible. Read the full story here: http://news-press.com/article/20090611/NEWS01/906110324

Texas House and Senate Adjourn Sine Die! Two major transplant bills passed

Mon, 01 Jun 2009 22:02:35 -0500

The transplant/organ donation community had a very successful Texas legislative session, and we want to sincerely thank everyone who helped. As the session ended Monday, June 1, the following bills had passed: HB2027 (Zerwas), the Uniform Anatomical Gift Act (UAGA) passed both the House and the Senate and was signed into law by the Governor. This bill conforms Texas law with Federal regulations and policies regarding organ donation. SB1803 (Zaffirini), relating to the Glenda Dawson Donate Life Texas Registry, has passed both the House and the Senate. It is expected to be signed by the Governor. This bill does three key things. It eliminates the laborious validation step when Texans register online at www.donatelifetexas.org, it directs DPS offices to simplify the registration process by asking each and every drivers license customer (in office, online and via mail) simply “Would you like to register as an organ donor?” and it directs TXDOT to link to the donor registry for those renewing auto registration online as well as providing registry information in offices and via mail. Gentle reminders to the Governor that this bill is an important one to sign would be very much appreciated, and any thank yous to your legislators for passing the bill are also appreciated. HB2055 (Guillen) This bill extends the term and duties of the Chronic Kidney Disease Task Force for another two years. The committee is now charged with developing a cost-effective plan for prevention, early screening, diagnosis, and management of CKD. HB2330 (Guillen) The bill relates to laboratory tests for serum creatinine; requires physicians who request a serum creatinine to provide to the lab all information about the person necessary to calculate the estimated glomerular filtration rate. Certain exceptions apply, and we will research the provisions of this bill and detail them in the next newsletter. Bills that didn’t make it through the process: SB284 (Nelson) called for the Anatomical Board to develop an educational brochure (available on the Web) for willed body donations, and also strengthened the laws surrounding chain of custody for transporting anatomical specimens. Would have required tissue banks to be AATB certified. This bill made it as far as the House General State Calendar, but because the House lost five working days due to the “chubbing” by House Democrats, SB284 was one of the casualties that didn’t get taken up again. SB312 (Wentworth) - related to medical examiners, giving the office of ME additional powers. This bill came out of the House committee, was referred to Calendars, but never made it out alive. SB775 (Lucio) - this was a bill to regulate laboratories, and it was, frankly, overkill. The bill was left pending in the Senate Health committee, where it exsanguinated. We have been advised that the Senator would like to work with us on this issue in the Interim.

Governor Perry signs HB 2027 (Anatomical Gift Act)

Wed, 27 May 2009 17:08:02 -0500

More than 8,000 Texans are on organ donor waiting lists, State donation and transplantation laws can mean the difference between life and death.

The Texas Anatomical Gift Act has been extensively amended since its original enactment. HB 2027 updates the outdated sections of our organ donation statute, and brings it into conformity with federal laws. Texas now joins 35 other states that have adopted this uniform anatomical gift act.

Highlights

Bolsters the rule that a donor’s autonomous decision regarding the making of an anatomical gift is honored and not subject to change by others.
Clarifies the ability of others to make donations in absence of first person consent.
Clarifies “reasonably available” in order to facilitate time sensitive donations
Conforms existing law with federal regulations and policies by clarifying who may receive a given anatomical gift for a specific purpose.
Criminalizes the intentional falsification of a document of gift or refusal when done to obtain financial gain.
Traces standard probate language with regard to choice of law in interpreting and executing anatomical gifts, which is important in today’s mobile society.
Does NOT change law passed in 1995 that requires the Medical Examiner to come to surgery and view the organs for transplant along with the transplant surgeon to determine whether or not they can be used for transplant or must be kept for forensic evidence.

HB2027 will go into effect September 1, 2009.

Thank you, Governor Perry

Watch the video from DMN about the successful living donor...

Tue, 19 May 2009 08:22:00 -0500

Watch the video from DMN about the successful living donor transplant carried out yesterday at UT Southwestern and Children’s Medical Center in Dallas.

(Please note, you may have to be a Vimeo subscriber to view here; otherwise, you can go to http://www.dallasnews.com/video/dallasnews/dmnphoto/index.html?nvid=362832&shu=1 and access the video directly from Dallas Morning News.)

More good news - HB2027 Passed the Texas Senate 5/15

Fri, 15 May 2009 14:27:10 -0500

The Revised Uniform Anatomical Gift Act passed the Senate unanimously today. The bill will now go back to conference committee so that the amendments can be accepted. We don’t anticipate any problems there, so hopefully it will be sent to Governor Perry soon.

Good news for the unemployed who take Pfizer meds

Thu, 14 May 2009 13:26:46 -0500

Good news for the unemployed who take Pfizer meds:

Pfizer announced a new program to allow people who have lost their jobs since Jan. 1 of this year and who have been taking a Pfizer medication (approx. 70 drugs included) for at least three months to receive free meds for up to one year. We hope other drug companies will follow suit!

Kudos to NKF for promoting the DonateLife message

Tue, 12 May 2009 17:28:42 -0500

We have learned that the NKF Web site has changed to refer visitors to their state registry instead of encouraging them to sign a donor card. On www.kidney.org (left side) you will see that a previous message to sign a donor card has been replaced with:”Give the Gift of Life - Sign up today to become an organ or tissue donor.” A message from an NKF listserv reads, in part, “Today, registries have replaced donor cards as the main vehicle for declaring intent to donate in many venues. Registries are now available in 46 states and in the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico.” Of course, in Texas you can visit www.donatelifetexas.net to sign up to be a donor.