- A Concerted Effort to Dispel the Myths about Donation

(New York, N.Y.) February 1, 2006 – More than 90,000 patients are currently clinging to life in the United States, desperately waiting for life-saving organ transplants. Tragically, each day 17 patients die because of the ongoing shortage of organ donors. Of that number, five of them—or 29 percent—are African-American. In a concerted effort to save more lives through organ and tissue transplantation, the New York Organ Donor Network is urging African-Americans to brush aside prevailing myths and instead obtain the facts about donation during the Black History Month in February. The major thrust of the Donor Network’s efforts is its appeal to African-Americans to enroll in the New York State Organ and Tissue Donor Registry.

Of those on the national organ transplant waiting list, a total of 24,760 patients or 30 percent are black. Dr. Dale Distant, the director of the division of transplantation in the department of surgery at SUNY Downstate Medical Center and the Donor Network’s newly-elected chairperson, said, “The critical need for organ donors is most sharply highlighted when the number of minorities on the waiting list is compared against overall census figures. A disproportionate number of minorities—by a staggering ratio of three to one—need transplants.” Dr. Distant is one of only approximately 30 black transplant surgeons and physicians in the United States.

African-Americans are more likely to need transplants due to diseases that are prevalent within their community such as diabetes and high blood pressure. The largest is for kidneys. Although blacks represent only 13.6 percent of the population, they comprise 22,618 or 35 percent of those waiting for kidneys. In the Greater New York metropolitan area, of the nearly 6,907 patients who need organ transplants, 1,950 blacks need kidneys.

The alarming shortage of organ donors is emphasized by the fact that in 2005, there were only 261 organ donors in the Greater New York metropolitan area, one less donor than in 2004. Of the 261 donors, 189 were Caucasian, 64 black, 3 Asian, and 5 classified as “other.” Of this group, 90 were also of Hispanic heritage.

In an effort to increase donation, Elaine Berg, the Donor Network president and CEO, said that one of her organization’s goals is to dispel the myths that surround organ and tissue donation. “If we can present the facts about donation to the African-American community, we believe that a greater number of people will enroll in the Donor Registry,” Ms. Berg said. “For example, many African-Americans fear that if they sign to be a donor, no efforts will be made to save their lives if they were rushed to the emergency room. This couldn’t be further from the truth. Ethically, and in every way, hospital emergency personnel are dedicated to saving lives. It’s only once a patient has died that we seek consent from family members for organ and tissue donation.”

Another common myth is that organ donation is in conflict with religion. “On the contrary,” Ms. Berg said, “all major religions endorse donation as being the highest form of charity.”

Ms. Berg also assured the public that the New York State Organ and Tissue Donor Registry is a highly confidential database. It is administered by New York’s Department of Health and is only accessed by health professionals when a patient has died, so that next of kin can be better informed about their loved one’s wishes in relation to organ and tissue donation.

According to Karen Cummings, a Donor Network public and professional donor specialist, many community groups in the New York metro area plan to support initiatives during Black History month that will educate African-Americans on the need for life saving organ and tissue transplants. “For example, the National Council of Negro Women Hempstead Chapter is sponsoring an educational event on February 3. The Allen Cathedral church in St. Albans is sponsoring a presentation on the Facts of Organ and Tissue donation for African Americans on February 19.” Anyone interested in attending is encouraged to contact Ms. Cummings at 646-291-4444 for additional information.

The New York Donor Network is the federally designated nonprofit organ procurement organization (OPO) in the Greater New York area. The Donor Network is responsible for the recovery of organs and tissues for transplantation; and the education of health care professionals and the public. Its service area covers a culturally and ethnically diverse population of 13 million in the five boroughs of New York City; all of Long Island; Duchess, Orange, Putnam, Rockland, and Westchester counties; in addition to Pike County, PA. The Donor Network is the nation’s second largest organ procurement organization.

To find out more about organ and tissue donation, and to enroll in the Donor Registry, visit the New York Organ Donor Network’s Web site at www.donatelifeny.org.