Osler’s Be A Donor campaign kicks off Organ and Tissue Donation Awareness

May 7, 2014 · 0 Comments

In recognition of National Organ and Tissue Donation Awareness Week, which ran April 20 to 27, William Osler Health System (Osler) partnered with Trillium Gift of Life Network (TGLN) to launch the Be A Donor campaign.
Osler seeks to register and/or reconfirm the donation status of 500 donors by tomorrow (Friday).
According to TGLN, there are approximately 1,500 people awaiting transplants in Ontario. But only 14 per cent of Brampton residents and 15 per cent of Etobicoke residents are registered organ and tissue donors, which is well below the provincial average of 24 per cent. Osler is hoping to increase these numbers with the Be A Donor campaign.
“Our decision to participate in the Be A Donor campaign stems from our ongoing commitment to delivering patient-inspired health care,” said Osler’s Executive Vice President of Clinical Services and Chief Nursing Executive Joanne Flewwelling. “We have asked our staff, physicians and volunteers to consider giving their consent to being registered organ and tissue donors, because we want to give hope to those on the transplant waiting list. The process only takes two minutes.”
To raise awareness of the campaign, Osler hosted a kickoff event April 23 at Brampton Civic Hospital with representatives from TGLN and special guest speaker Jennifer Monteith, who shared her inspiring story with the crowd. In January of 2010, she received a new heart after coping with congestive heart failure for nearly two years.
“I’m living the dream. I get a second chance at life. I get up every day in gratitude that someone made the decision to become an organ donor,” Monteith said. “It’s important to start the conversation with your family about organ donation.”
To help, visit www.beadonor.ca/WilliamOsler and register as a donor or confirm that you already enrolled. Spending two minutes to visit the website could save a life.