DonateLife Week encourages Australians to register as organ and tissue donors, and to have the conversation with their family and friends.

Northern Health had the privilege of looking after seven patients and their families who very generously agreed to organ, eye and tissue donation in the last 12 months. The generosity of our Northern Health patients and families resulted in eight people on dialysis receiving kidney transplants, two people receiving life-saving double lung transplants, one person receiving a life-saving heart transplant, one person receiving a life-saving liver transplant and one person with diabetes receiving a pancreatic islet cell transplant.

“Countless other people benefitted from life-changing corneal and tissue transplants. We continue to be in awe of the generosity of people at one of the most distressing times of their lives when a loved one is dying,” says the Donation Specialist team of Dave Crosbie and Monica Dowling.

They say, “None of this is possible without the efforts of many people at Northern Health under the direction of our Designated Officer. The Officer ensures that every aspect of organ and tissue donation at Northern Health complies with all relevant legislation. The Emergency Department, the Intensive Care Unit and the Theatre Complex’s commitment to facilitating the wishes of donor patients and their families is remarkable.”

“Northern Hospital Theatre has earned a well-deserved reputation in the donation field for being ‘extraordinarily accommodating’. Northern Pathology, Radiology, the Echocardiography team, Cath Lab and Interventional Cardiologists are very responsive to the needs of our organ donation patients.”

“We would like to take this opportunity to thank each and every one of you. It is very much appreciated,” says the team.

With a decrease in donation and transplantation activity during 2020 due to COVID-19, it’s never been more important to encourage Australians to register as organ and tissue donors.

There are around 13 million Australians aged over 16 who are eligible to register as an organ and tissue donor – but haven’t.

The Great Registration Race for DonateLife Week has set itself the goal of encouraging up to 100,000 more Australians to join the Australian Organ Donor Register.

The Great Registration Race runs all July and August. For more information on DonateLife Week, click here.

Featured Image: Dave Crosbie