April is Be A Donor Month in Ontario and the Trillium Gift of Life Network is hammering home the importance of registration.
ICU doctor and Ontario Health’s Organ and Tissue Donation Provincial Medical Director Andrew Healey says they’ll never eliminate the wait list, but it’s a goal they cannot afford to stop reaching for.
While 90% of Ontario residents support organ donation, only 35% are signed up as a donor.
That’s a gap Ontario Health is trying to address through education during Be A Donor month.
Healey says becoming a donor gives you the chance to save lives in your final moments.
There’s currently 1,131 people awaiting a transplant, and one person dies every three days without receiving the life-saving procedure.
Every April Ontario Health works to address the low registration figures in Ontario for the life-saving procedure.
One donor can save up to eight lives, and Healey says expressing your wishes to your family early and often helps allieviate some of their stress at a trying time.
Learn more and see where your town ranks in registration at beadonor.ca and giftoflife.on.ca.
Written by Grant Deme
