Retailers 4Life: Donors

2 Ways to Sign-up

Sign-up online at www.DonateLifeVirginia.org .
Print donor application and mail to: Donate Life Partnership, 9200 Arboretum Parkway, Suite 104, Richmond, VA 23236-3489.

Retailers for Life Resource Guide

An Introduction to Organ, Eye and Tissue Donation Presented by the Donate Life Partnership and the Retail Merchants Association

Frequently Asked Questions

What is organ and tissue donation?

Organ and tissue donation is the process of surgically removing organs and tissues from a deceased person in order for the organs and tissues to be used for transplantation and/or medical research.

Who can be an organ and/or tissue donor?

Everyone should consider him/herself a potential organ and tissue donor. Your medical condition at the time of death will determine what organs and tissues can be donated. Organs are recovered from individuals who have been declared brain dead. Organ donors may also be able to donate tissue. An individual whose heart has stopped beating has died of a cardiac death, and the organs cannot be donated for transplantation in most cases. The patient is, however, a potential candidate for tissue donation.

What organs can be transplanted?

One organ donor can save seven lives. Organs that can be transplanted include—heart, lungs (2), liver, intestine, kidney (2), and pancreas.

What tissues can be transplanted?

One tissue donor can enhance the lives of more than 50 individuals. Tissues that can be transplanted include—blood vessels, heart valves, bone, corneas, sclera, pericardium, fascia, cartilage and skin.

Is brain death really death?

Neurological death means that the brain and brainstem have died and no longer function. A neuro specialist performs a series of tests to determine death. If these tests show that there is no blood flow to the brain, then it is completely destroyed and can never work again and brain death is declared.

Will my decision to donate interfere with my own health care?

No! Health care institutions exist to help you, and doctors are bound by the Hippocratic Oath to do so. It would make no sense for them to “kill you off” for your organs and tissues. The donor program is only activated once death has been declared. There is no conflict of interest between the doctors declaring death and the donor program. Medical personnel must follow strict guidelines before they can pronounce death and remove organs.

Who will receive my donated organs?

Transplant coordinators utilize a national computer system managed by the United Network for Organ Sharing. The computer system lists the potential recipients based on their blood type, body size, medical urgency and length of time on the waiting list.

How do I become a donor?

In Virginia, your wishes are honored according to state law based on your donor designation. There are several ways to indicate your wish to become a donor: register at www.DonateLifeVirginia.org or designate “organ donor” on your driver’s license or state issued identification card.

Common Myths and Misconceptions

Myth: If emergency room doctors know I am a donor, they won’t try to save my life.

Fact: If you are sick or injured and admitted to the hospital, the number one priority is to save your life. The doctors who work to save your life are not the same doctors involved with organ donation. It is only after every attempt has been made to save your life that donation will be discussed with your family.

Myth: When you’re waiting for a transplant your financial or celebrity status is as important as your medical status.

Fact: The organ allocation and distribution system is blind to wealth or social status. The length of time it takes to receive a transplant is influenced by a variety of factors including location, severity of illness, physical characteristics (blood type, weight, genetic typing, and size) and length of time on the waiting list. Factors such as race, gender, age, income or celebrity status is never considered when determining who receives an organ.

Myth: They might take my organs before I am really dead.

Fact: Organ donation is only accepted following the declaration of death by a doctor not involved in transplantation. In order to donate organs, a patient must be declared dead. Using specific medical criteria, a physician can confirm brain death beyond any doubt.

Myth: I carry a donor card and it is in my will that I want to be a donor, so I don’t have to tell my family about my wishes.

Fact: Your will may be read too late to make donation possible. In Virginia there are two ways to legally declare your decision to donate—indicating your decision on your driver’s license or online in the statewide donor registry www.save7lives.org. Also, make certain your family is aware of your wishes so that they may assist recovery staff in carrying out your wishes.

Myth: If I agree to donate my organs, my family will be charged for the costs.

Fact: There is no cost to the donor’s family or estate for organ and tissue donation. Funeral costs remain the family’s responsibility.

Myth: Organ donation will disfigure my body and change the way I look in a casket.

Fact: Donated organs are removed surgically, in a routine operation similar to gallbladder or appendix removal. Donation does not interfere with funeral services or the ability to have an open casket funeral.

Myth: My religion prohibits organ donation.

Fact: All major organized religions approve of organ and tissue donation and consider it an act of charity.

Myth: I am too old and sick to be a donor.

Fact: People of all ages should consider themselves potential donors. Your medical condition at the time of death will determine what organs and tissues can be donated. With recent medical advances in transplantation many more people than ever before can be donors.

Myth: I have heard about people who steal kidneys and sell them on the black market.

Fact: There is no evidence of any such activity occurring in the United States. It is illegal to buy or sell human organs. In addition, a national governing body reviews every organ donation and transplant. Strict regulations prevent any type of “black market existence in the United States.