News Stories
| 2/5/08 | Are you on the list? Organ donor registry saves lives |
| By MAGGIE SOUZA Tuesday, February 05, 2008
About four and a half years ago, Longview resident Daniel Rae collapsed at work when his heart suddenly stopped. He had gone into cardiac arrest, a condition that often causes brain damage and death within minutes.
The next morning, a scan confirmed that the 21-year-old man was brain-dead, leaving his grieving family with a decision they never thought they'd have to make for him.
Would they be willing to donate his organs?
"We talked to each other, to all of his grandparents and as many family members as were there," recalled his mother, Kathy Rae. "Everyone agreed that although it had never been discussed and Dan had never mentioned it, that it would be something Daniel would want to do."
The Rae family told the Southwest Transplant Alliance, a nonprofit organ transplant organization, to use as many of Daniel Rae's organs as possible. Later, Kathy Rae would get a letter telling her how many people had been helped because of their decision.
Though the Raes were able to come together during a tragic time to make that commitment, not every family can agree on what to do.
"It's really hard for them to say yes at a time like that," said Pam Silvestri, spokeswoman for Southwest Transplant Alliance, one of three organ procurement organizations in the state.
The question poses problems even if family members know their relative wanted to be a donor, she said.
"Sometimes the family still had a hard time saying yes because of the emotions they were going through," Silvestri said.
Families no longer have to make that choice because of a recently revamped state-maintained registry.
The Glenda Dawson Donate Life Texas Registry began in 2005. It started out as the Donor Education, Awareness and Registry of Texas, but it was renamed in September for the state representative who led the push for the database. The registry was renamed after the Web site was changed to become more user-friendly, Silvestri said.
Joining the registry means that there is no question about a person's wishes when it comes to donating organs.
In the past, a person indicated intent to be a donor by putting a sticker on his driver's license. That method was discontinued about eight years ago, for a few reasons, Silvestri explained.
Under the previous system, family members could overrule a person's intent to be an organ donor, she said.
"Consent rates were definitely getting better," Silvestri said, "but there were enough times when families said no, and either went home and found a donor card or remembered the person had told them, that we really wanted to give people a way to make sure their wishes were being carried out."
Another reason the registry replaced the driver's license sticker was because of a pervasive, but unfounded, fear that medical caregivers who saw a donor sticker might not try as hard to save a person's life, Silvestri said.
With the registry, that's not an issue. Medical personnel don't know if a patient is on the list until after the person has been declared brain-dead and organ donation is a possibility, Silvestri said.
She added that although the registry is the only way to ensure that a person be considered an organ donor, talking to family is still crucial.
"The most important thing if you want to be a donor is to have a conversation with your family," Silvestri said. "But if you're not sure they'd be able to follow that, then being on the registry is the best bet and will definitely take the burden off family for having to make that decision."
Shela Dawson, a registered nurse, knows just how often that dilemma comes up in a hospital.
Dawson, now the director of health services at LeTourneau University, previously worked in Good Shepherd Medical Center's intensive care unit.
"Being a nurse in ICU, you see it every day," said the Longview resident, who recently joined the registry.
"People often die suddenly and tragically that are able to donate their organs and save another individual's life," Dawson said.
"But it's hard for grieving families" to think about, she said.
That's why having an official registry and signing up for it is vital, she said.
"It's just so important, and easy to do," Dawson said. "It takes just a few minutes of your time, and (joining the registry) will also give you something in your hand to explain to your family members exactly what you want when you die."
Since Daniel Rae's death, his family members have made it a point to share their wishes.
"It's very uncomfortable for a lot of people because you're discussing the event of your death," Kathy Rae said. "But if you've gone through something like this, it forces you to realize that people die at any age, not just when they're old."
Rae and her husband, Gary, who live in Longview, have signed up for the registry, in addition to discussing it with their loved ones.
"Losing someone at an early age forces you to think about all of the things you don't want to think about, and those decisions left behind," Rae said. "If everybody knows what you want, those decisions are easier to make."
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The Texas organ donor registry What it is: The official state organ, tissue and eye donor registry. It is a way for people to ensure they will have the chance to be organ donors if they die.
Why it was created: People previously would indicate on their drivers' licenses that they wished to be organ donors. However, families could successfully protest this.
When was it created: In 2005, Texas became the 41st state to have a state donor registry. The program was revamped in September and renamed the Glenda Dawson Donate Life Texas Registry, after the lawmaker who led the effort to create it.
Who can join the registry: Anyone. (Parents must sign for children younger than 18.)
What can be donated: Heart, liver, lungs, bone and soft tissues, kidneys, veins, eyes and skin.
How to join the registry: Sign up at the local Department of Public Safety office while applying for or renewing a license or ID card. Visit www.donatelifetexas.org or www.donevidatexas.org.
— Source: Glenda Dawson Donate Life Texas Registry organization
How organ recovery works 1. A person on a ventilator dies in a hospital. This is the only way a person can be a donor because it is the only way the organs still will be getting oxygen after the person is otherwise dead.
2. Once a patient is declared brain-dead, hospital staff members call the local donation agency. The Southwest Transplant Alliance serves Northeast, Southeast and West Texas.
3. The donation agency looks at the person's charts to make sure nothing will rule that person out as an organ donor, including HIV/AIDS, metastatic cancer and serious injury to the organs.
4. The donation agency staff members run the person's name through the Texas organ donor registry. If his name is found, they inform the family that they will recover organs. (If the person is from another state, the donation agency will call that state to have it check that registry.) If the name is not found, the donation agency and hospital staff talk to the family about making the decision to donate.
5. If the answer is yes, the donation agency makes sure all organs are functioning well.
6. The donor's blood type and body size are entered into the database, which then uses factors such as how long people have been on the waiting list and where they are in the country to develop a list of potential organ recipients.
7. The donation agency contacts the doctor of the first patient and gives an hour for the person to reply. The agency then contacts a second person, who will receive the organ if the first person doesn't respond in time.
8. Once the organ is placed, a surgical team flies to the hospital where the donor is to retrieve the organs, and the team then flies back to perform the surgery on the organ recipient.
— Source: Southwest Transplant Alliance
By the numbers
— Source: Southwest Transplant Alliance and Texas Registry
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