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(NEW YORK, NY) September 14, 2005 – As the nation celebrates National Hispanic Heritage Month from September 15 to October 15, the New York Organ Donor Network is highlighting Hispanics who have made life-saving, often unrecognized, contributions by the community. These donor families, in spite of their loss and grief, donated loved one's organs and tissues so that others could live.
One donor mother, Celina Lopez and her husband, Jose, are advocates for donation. In August 1998, their 17-year-old son, Paul Anthony Lopez, was killed in a car accident caused by a drunk driver. Paul, who was enrolled to begin his studies at New York University in the fall of that year, had indicated on his driver's license his desire to be an organ donor. Faced with their only son's untimely death, his parents decided to fulfill his wishes. They donated Paul's heart, kidneys, lungs, liver and pancreas.
Celina and Jose, active volunteers for the New York Organ Donor Network continue to disseminate information to the public and professionals in both English and in Spanish. According to Celina, “It is important for the Latino community to meet a family that has actually donated. It gives them an opportunity to ask questions and to understand the benefits that donation brings to both the donor families and the recipients of organ transplants.”
Julia Rivera, director of communications for the New York Organ Donor Network, adds, “The
Hispanic Community has made exemplary contributions in organ donation in the Greater metropolitan area. One out of every two Hispanics donate in our region. However, there is so much more we can do, provided we continue to remain sensitive to the cultural and language needs of the Hispanic community. The consent rate for organ donation among Hispanics is approximately 50%, but we‘d like to raise it to at least 75%. In New York State alone, there are 8,192 patients on the transplant waiting list and of that total, 1,397 or 17.1% are Hispanic. Nationally, of the nearly 90,000 people on the organ transplant waiting list, 15% (13,706 patients) are Hispanic. Last year alone, over 800 Hispanics in the U.S. died waiting for a life-saving organ transplant. Our goal is to minimize that list so that everyone can have a second chance at life.”
Elaine Berg, president and CEO of the Donor Network, said: “During this month, we honor all of the Hispanics in our community who have made life-saving and life-improving gifts and who have contributed their own miracles to our society as a result of donation and transplantation. It is our hope that their acts of generosity and their accomplishments are both recognized and emulated by others so that more lives will be saved.”
During National Hispanic Heritage Month, the New York Organ Donor Network also aims to foster the community's awareness and understanding of organ and tissue donation and dispel misconceptions held by Hispanics which may impede the donation process.
“The facts are clear: if faced with a medical emergency, all efforts to save a life will be exhausted and death must be legally declared before donation is discussed with the family, “Ms. Rivera said. “All major religions support donation; there is no cost for donation; and donation does not interfere with funeral arrangements.”
For more information, visit the New York Organ Donor Network's Web site at www.donatelifeny.org , which also offers a section in Spanish. The Hispanic community can contact this Web site to order Done Vida campaign brochures in Spanish. The brochures can also be obtained by calling 1-800-GIFT-4-NY or 1-800-443-8469.
Media Contact: Martin Woolf at 646-291-4460 or mwoolf@nyodn.org .
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