Organ Donation: Get the Facts

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Organ Donation Get the Facts
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MYTH

• If emergency room doctors know youre an organ
  donor, they wont work as hard to save you.

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FACT

• If you are sick or injured and admitted to the
  hospital, the number one priority is to save your
  life. Organ donation can only be considered if
  you die and after your family has been consulted.

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MYTH

• When youre waiting for a transplant, your
  financial status or celebrity status is as
  important as your medical status.

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FACT

• When you are on the transplant waiting list for a
  donor organ, what really counts is the severity
  of your illness, time spent waiting, blood type
  and other important medical information.

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MYTH

• Having "organ donor" noted on your driver's
  license or carrying a donor card is all you have
  to do to become a donor.

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FACT

• While a signed donor card and a driver's license
  with an "organ donor" designation are legal
  documents, organ and tissue donation is always
  discussed with family members prior to the
  donation. To ensure that your family understands
  your wishes, it is important
  that you share your
  decision to donate
  LIFE.

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MYTH

• My family will be charged for donating my organs.

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FACT

• There is no cost to the donor's family or estate
  for organ and tissue donation. Funeral costs
  remain the responsibility of the family.

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WHY DOES IT MATTER?

• More than 80,000 men, women and children
  currently await life-saving transplants.
• Every 13 minutes another
• name is added to the national transplant
  waiting list.

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• An average of 17 people die each day from the
  lack of available organs for transplant.
• In 2001, there were 6,081 deceased organ donors
  and 6,510 living organ donors resulting in 24,092
  organ transplants.

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• 46,532 cornea transplants were performed in 2001.
  
• Nearly 900,000 tissue
  transplants were
  performed in 2001.