By Deborah Jeanne Sergeant
When it comes to organ donation designations, New York could do better to meet the need.
According to the US Health Resources and Services Administration, 105,800 people nationwide are waiting for an organ donation. More than 8,500 of those are New Yorkers and about 500 of those will die before they receive a transplant Univera Healthcare report released in March 2022.
“These aren’t just statistics, but rather our loved ones, coworkers and neighbors,” said Lorna Fitzpatrick, vice president medical affairs and senior medical director at Univera Healthcare in a statement. “We can increase their odds for a successful donor match by increasing the number of people who register to be donors.”
On average, each donor can save eight lives and enhance 75 more.
Despite ranking as one of the highest states for donor need, only 49% of New Yorkers eligible to donate have enrolled in the Donate Life Registry; 63% is the national average.
New York-Presbyterian, a healthcare system in New York City, stated that as of 2017, New York state ranks last in the nation for the number of enrollees.
Ten years ago, the New York state enrollment rate for donors was 29% but is nearly 50% now, which Ryan counts as an important increase. Ryan believes that increasing the number of methods for singing up for the NYS Donate Life Registry has helped the rate inch upward. Regardless of how or where a donor registers, it goes to the NYS Donate Life Registry.
Myths about medical care prevent some people from registering. For example, some people believe that their level of care will be compromised if they are admitted to the hospital and identified as a registered donor.
“That doesn’t make any sense,” said Jorge Ortiz, transplant surgeon with UBMD Surgery and professor in the department of surgery, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences at University at BU. “Someone in Jonestown, Pennsylvania is not trying to get organs for Pittsburgh. No one wants to lose their license. That doesn’t make any sense.”
Plus, only donation experts have that access to who is registered and it is only accessed at the point of death. Doctors providing care to patients who are critically ill or injured are not the same as those who coordinate donor transplants.
The records in the NYS Donate Life Registry are secured in a database closed to medical personnel at hospitals and only accessible to organizations such as ConnectLife Registry, which serves Western New York. The organization provides the link in coordinating donation to recipients in transplant centers.
It’s also a myth that people in a coma are automatically considered for organ donation.
“If you’re in a coma, they cannot take your organs unless you’re brain dead or about to be brain dead and your family consents,” Ortiz said. “It’s against US federal law to buy and sell organs. The rich and famous do not get organs first. Popularity and finances are not considered. Your organs won’t be used for experimentation unless you designate them for a research institute.”
Some people resist signing up for organ donation as they assume that their family members would want to make that decision. Ortiz said that selecting registration in advance can provide comfort to family members who do not have to make that decision. However, they can override the decision. It can also help them feel that their loved one’s loss can at least benefit someone else.
Another myth is that ethnicity or sexual orientation makes a difference in organ donation. Ortiz said that neither of these disqualifies potential organ donors.
“One problem among non-majority recipients is that there aren’t enough donors that would match them genetically,” Ortiz noted.
Some people believe it is costly to donate organs. Ortiz said that it is free for those donating. The recipient is responsible for paying medical expenses.
It’s a mistake to assume that one’s body is too old, ill or unusual to help others. Ortiz said that no medical information is gathered upon registration.
“History of mental illness, health and age are not contraindicated,” he said. “If you’re an organ donor, you can donate your body to research.”
He also said that many people assume that religion forbids organ donation. Most major world religions support organ and tissue donation. Any religious, cultural or familial beliefs should be discussed before deciding about organ donation.
Some think that organ donation causes problems with burial and funeral services.
“That’s not true; you can have an open casket service,” Ortiz said. “The way the incision is made, it’s not obvious donation has been made. Open casket is still viable.”
According to Health Resources & Services Administration, the most common transplants nationwide in 2021 were kidney (24,670, with 90,483 still waiting); liver (9,236, with 11,891 still waiting); heart (3,817, with 3,502 still waiting); lung (2,524 with 1,051 still waiting) and other (1,108, with 290 still waiting). The “other” category includes skin, face, hands and abdominal wall. Some things such as a kidney, bone marrow and part of the liver may be donated by living donors.