The Gift of Life

Since April 19th marks the beginning of National Organ and Tissue Donation Awareness week I thought I'd provide some interesting stats to motivate everyone to become registered organ donors.

The Need

• In 2008 over 4,300 Canadians were waiting for a transplant of some kind. Of those people, 215 died before donor organs could be procured.
• Organs are donated in just 1.5 % of approximately 30,000 deaths recorded in Ontario hospitals each year

The Impact You Have

• Donate kidneys to free two people from dialysis treatment needed to sustain life.
• Save the lives of patients awaiting heart, liver, lung or pancreas transplants.
• Give sight to two people trough the donation of corneas.
• Donate bone to help repair injured joints or to help save an arm or leg threatened by cancer.
• Help burn victims heal more quickly through the donation of skin.
• Provide healthy heart valves for someone whose life is threatened by malfunctioning or diseased heart valves

*Just one donor can save up to eight lives and enhance up to 75 others!