Give The Gift Of Life This Year By Becoming An Organ Donor
Every 10 minutes, another person is added to the national transplant waiting list, which already has more than 100,000 people hoping to be matched with a potential donor. We need more potential organ donors to help offset this growing list, and if you’re looking for some way to give back to the community this holiday season, consider signing up to be an organ donor. In today’s blog, we explain why you should consider becoming an organ donor, and how to sign up if you want to potentially save lives in the future.
Why Become An Organ Donor?
People become organ donors for a variety of reasons, but here are a few reasons why you should consider becoming an organ donor this year.
1. It Saves Lives – Perhaps the most obvious reason as to why someone would become an organ donor is because doing so can save lives. Tens of thousands of people on the transplant waitlist will eventually die if they do not receive their transplant, and if an accident should result in you no longer needing those organs, you can end up saving a number of lives. Every day 17 people die while waiting for an organ transplant, but we can reduce that number by getting more people to sign up to become an organ donor.
2. You Won’t Need Your Organs – Organ donation is only considered if there is no chance that a patient can recover from their injuries. If an unfortunate incident were to result in brain or body death, the fact of the matter is that you don’t need your organs anymore. That said, they can still serve a tremendous purpose by giving the gift of life to someone on the transplant list. One person’s tragedy can be a miracle for others on the waiting list, so there’s no point in taking your organs with you once you’re gone if they have the chance to help give life to someone else.
3. Most Won’t Qualify – The fact of the matter is that a person needs to die in a highly specific manner such that their organs are viable to transplant to someone else. In fact, only about three in 1,000 people die in such a manner that their organs would be viable for transplant, and if those three people aren’t organ donors, potential recipients will be out of luck. It’s highly unlikely that your organs will go on to help someone else even if you do sign up, but if you end up as one of the rare cases, being a donor can make all the difference.
4. Anyone Can Donate – There are no age or race restrictions, and even people with different underlying health conditions would still be eligible in the event that their organs could be harvested and donated.
5. There’s Still Time To Make A Difference – You may assume that patients on the waiting list are only looking for young and perfectly healthy organs, but that’s not the case. Last year, one in three organ donations came from someone over the age of 50, so there’s still plenty of time to make a difference no matter your age.
How Can I Become An Organ Donor?
If you live in Wisconsin and wish to become an organ donor, you can do so by visiting DonateLifeWisconsin.org. The process only takes a few minutes, and you can also get answers to any questions you might have or read stories about people whose lives have been touched by the organ donation process!
So if you are looking to give back this holiday season, consider becoming an organ donor and possibly giving life to others in the future! The team at Gold Cross Ambulance wishes you and your family a safe and happy holiday season.
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