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| Here are some key words that will help as you write your story about organ and tissue donation. For a more comprehensive list, refer to Glossary |
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Brain Death
Brain death is a diagnosis of death that is both medically and legally recognized. Brain death occurs when blood flow to the brain stops for an extended period of time. Without blood, the brain has no source of oxygen and without oxygen, the brain begins to die. A brain dead individual has been defined as one "who has either (1) irreversible cessation of circulatory and respiratory functions, or (2) irreversible cessation of all functions of the entire brain, including the brainstem." (Uniform Determination of Death Act, promulgated in 1980) |
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Cadaveric
Term no longer used by organ and tissue donor families.
See Deceased Donor or Non-Living Donor |
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Deceased Donor
A deceased organ or tissue donor who is usually unrelated to the recipient. |
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Family Consent
Requested for donation in New York State. All organ and tissue donors, regardless of any documentation, must inform their families of their decisions so that their wishes may be fulfilled. |
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Harvest or Harvesting
Term no longer used by organ and tissue donor families.
See Recover |
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Next of Kin
The person(s) most closely related to a deceased individual as designated by applicable law such as the Uniform Anatomical Gift Act |
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Non-living Donor
A deceased organ or tissue donor who is usually unrelated to the recipient. |
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Organ Procurement Organization (OPO)
An organization designated by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and responsible for the procurement of organs and tissues for transplantation and the promotion of organ and tissue donation. Fifty eight OPOs currently operate in the Unites States. The New York Organ Donor Network is the organ procurement organization serving the Greater New York metropolitan area. OPOs employ transplant coordinators who work with donor families and also provide educational programs to hospitals. OPOs may be based in a hospital or be independent of any particular hospital. |
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Organ Donor
A person who wishes to donate organs and indicates so on the back of a driver's license through the New York State Registry or on an organ donor card. |
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Organs
Human organs available for transplantation include the heart, liver, kidney, pancreas, intestines and lung lobes. |
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Procurement
See Recover |
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Recipient
An individual who receives transplanted organs or tissues. Federal and State legislation requires hospitals to have in place written policies and protocols for referring potential organ and tissue donors and/or requesting donation from families of potential donors. Factors such as race, gender, and age income or celebrity status are not considered when determining who receives organs or tissues. |
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Recover
A term used to describe the process of recovering life-saving and life-enhancing organs and tissues for recipients on the waiting list. Donated organs are removed surgically; donation neither disfigures the body nor eliminates the possibility for an open casket funeral. |
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Registry
The New York State Organ and Tissue Donor Registry houses a database of state residents who wish to become donors. Enrollment in the Registry is voluntary and the Department of Health collects only the information you provide on the enrollment form. The collection of information through this website and the disclosure of that information are subject to the provisions of the Internet Security and Privacy Act. |
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Tissues
Tissues available for transplantation include corneas, skin, bone, heart valves, veins and tendons. |
