The month of April marks the celebration of National Donate Life Awareness across our nation. With more than 113,000 people on the waiting list for life saving organ transplants, it is now more important than ever to become a registered organ, tissue and eye donor. As part of this month-long awareness, Nebraska Organ Recovery System (NORS) has taken it a step further and set a statewide goal to register 700,000 organ, tissue and eye donors before July 1, 2012. As of the New Year, the Donor Registry of Nebraska was around 32,000 people short of this goal.
Becoming a registered organ, tissue and eye donor could result in a person saving up to eight lives and possibility affecting the lives of up to 60 others with tissue and eye donation. Nebraska has only averaged about 40 organ donors per year over the past ten years, and with nearly 500 Nebraskan’s on the waiting list, there certainly are not enough organs donated to save the lives of our own residents, which is why it is so important to take a few minutes and register.
NORS’ continual goal is to bring awareness to every part of the state in hopes of discrediting common myths and misconceptions surrounding the donation process and also provide a better understanding of what it truly means to become a registered organ, tissue and eye donor. For more information, please visit the Donate Life website at www.NEdonation.org. For a local contact, call Cindy Tuxhorn at (402) 723-4512 ext 214, or email ctuxhorn@hhcsinc.org.
Kelsey Bergen
