New information reported by Trillium Gift of Life Network (TGLN) shows there are opportunities for both hospitals and Ontarians to play a role when it comes to increasing the number of lives saved through organ and tissue donation in Ontario. A recent study conducted at 42 hospitals in Ontario reported an average of 93 per cent of potential organ and tissue donation cases to TGLN, but only 52 per cent of potential donation cases became organ donors. An important step that Ontarians can take to help save lives is to register their consent for organ donation at beadonor.ca and to talk to their family about their wishes. Most families consent to donating their loved ones’ organs when they are registered.
New data available today at www.beadonor.ca shows that only 25 per cent, or 2.9 million Ontarians, have registered their consent to save lives through organ and tissue donation.
Quick Facts:
- Only when a patient’s life cannot be saved does organ and tissue donation become an option. Organ donation will only proceed with family consent and following declaration of death by two physicians.
- Donor registration is confidential. This information is only provided to TGLN at end-of-life to share with families when they are approached to seek consent for donation.
- Only 2-3 per cent of hospital deaths occur in circumstances that permit organ donation.
- To be able to facilitate organ donation, a hospital must have the capacity to sustain a patient on a ventilator for a continued period of time.
- One donor can save up to 8 lives and improve the lives of up to 75 others through tissue donation.
You can register consent for organ and tissue donation at www.beadonor.ca.
Donation performance data including routine notification rate and conversion rate, by hospital is available at http://www.giftoflife.on.ca/en/publicreporting.htm