5 Things to Know About Organ and Tissue Donation1. Referral
Tissue Donation: Every death must be referred to NJ Sharing Network within one hour for evaluation as a tissue donor (bone, skin, corneas etc.). Please have the chart with you to answer questions regarding the patient’s medical condition. If the family is still present in the hospital, NJ Sharing Network may ask to speak with them over the phone about this crucial end of life opportunity. One tissue donor can restore health to 50-75 people!
Organ Donation: Refer within 1 hour – every ventilator dependent patient with: GCS of 5 or less , absence of 2+ brain stem reflexes, next of kin beginning discussions of withdrawal of ventilator support. Typically these patients have suffered a non-survivable neurological injury/ disease.
2. Medical Suitability: After the initial phone screening, NJ Sharing Network may send a Transplant Coordinator on-site to evaluate the patient. This may require drawing blood for infectious disease testing required to determine medical suitability as well as examination of the patient’s chart.
3. Two Pathways to Organ Donation: Most donations occur after a patient has been declared brain dead. Patients are artificially maintained on a ventilator while the National Transplant Waiting List is checked for potential recipients. Donation after Cardiac Death (DCD) occurs after a family has made the decision to terminally extubate. Withdrawal typically occurs in the operating room and if the patient passes within 90 minutes kidneys, and possibly liver/ pancreas, can be recovered for transplant.
4. Consent: Any approach for donation should be a collaborative effort between NJ Sharing Network and the healthcare team. A family should only be approached for donation once they understand the prognosis of brain death or have decided to withdraw ventilator support and NJ Sharing Network has evaluated for donor suitability.
5. Maximize the Gift: One organ donor can save up to 8 lives. Any potential donor must be maintained hemodynamically to maximize the gift and increase the number of lives that can be saved. Upon pronouncement of brain death, 12 -24 hours may be needed to identify recipients and arrange for the recovery to occur.
source http://www.njsharingnetwork.org/document.doc?id=176
Tissue Donation: Every death must be referred to NJ Sharing Network within one hour for evaluation as a tissue donor (bone, skin, corneas etc.). Please have the chart with you to answer questions regarding the patient’s medical condition. If the family is still present in the hospital, NJ Sharing Network may ask to speak with them over the phone about this crucial end of life opportunity. One tissue donor can restore health to 50-75 people!
Organ Donation: Refer within 1 hour – every ventilator dependent patient with: GCS of 5 or less , absence of 2+ brain stem reflexes, next of kin beginning discussions of withdrawal of ventilator support. Typically these patients have suffered a non-survivable neurological injury/ disease.
2. Medical Suitability: After the initial phone screening, NJ Sharing Network may send a Transplant Coordinator on-site to evaluate the patient. This may require drawing blood for infectious disease testing required to determine medical suitability as well as examination of the patient’s chart.
3. Two Pathways to Organ Donation: Most donations occur after a patient has been declared brain dead. Patients are artificially maintained on a ventilator while the National Transplant Waiting List is checked for potential recipients. Donation after Cardiac Death (DCD) occurs after a family has made the decision to terminally extubate. Withdrawal typically occurs in the operating room and if the patient passes within 90 minutes kidneys, and possibly liver/ pancreas, can be recovered for transplant.
4. Consent: Any approach for donation should be a collaborative effort between NJ Sharing Network and the healthcare team. A family should only be approached for donation once they understand the prognosis of brain death or have decided to withdraw ventilator support and NJ Sharing Network has evaluated for donor suitability.
5. Maximize the Gift: One organ donor can save up to 8 lives. Any potential donor must be maintained hemodynamically to maximize the gift and increase the number of lives that can be saved. Upon pronouncement of brain death, 12 -24 hours may be needed to identify recipients and arrange for the recovery to occur.
source http://www.njsharingnetwork.org/document.doc?id=176
