A NEWSLETTER FOR FRIENDS OF CAROLINA DONOR SERVICES, ORGAN AND TISSUE TRANSPLANT RECIPIENTS, DONOR FAMILIES, AMBASSADORS AND PROFESSIONALS. PARTNERS FOR LIFE LEADERSHIP CHANGES AT CDS Looking back on 2016, leadership change was certainly a prevalent theme, both on a national level as well as at Carolina Donor Services (CDS). As our nation was gearing up for congressional and presidential elections, Carolina Donor Services’ President and CEO, Lloyd Jordan, announced his retirement after 30 years of inspiring leadership. In late 2016, he was honored with a series of events attended by colleagues, friends and family who celebrated his many contributions in the organ donation and transplantation community and thanked him for his steadfast leadership over the last three decades. Just before his retirement, Mr. Jordan announced his successor, saying, “I am pleased to share with you that, after a thorough and diligent process, the CDS Board of Directors has named Danielle Niedfeldt the new Chief Executive Officer. I couldn’t be more confident about the bright future of Carolina Donor Services under her leadership.” A registered nurse and licensed attorney, Ms. Niedfeldt joined Carolina Donor Services in 1999 and has served in various positions. She was appointed Vice President/COO in 2008. In December, Kim Koontz was promoted from Director of Tissue Services to the Chief Operating Officer position. She has been with CDS for over 12 years. “We are honored to be carrying on Lloyd’s legacy of unwavering dedication to organ and tissue donation,” said Ms. Niedfeldt. “His work on a national level and here in North Carolina brought about significant improvements which have positively impacted countless lives across the country,” she said. The leadership team and staff at Carolina Donor Services feel very fortunate to have worked with Lloyd Jordan for many years. “Lloyd paved the way by creating strong relationships within our organization as well as with colleagues from across the country. Now, we’re building upon his successful efforts as we seek ways to continue to improve our service to our transplant centers and hospitals, other partners, communities and most importantly, our heroic donors and their families,” said Ms. Niedfeldt. A Year in Review PRINTED MARCH 2017 2016 2016 Highlights 4,891,695 1,137,997 782 194 Total number of registered donors in North Carolina Number of individuals who chose to register as a donor by adding or renewing a heart at the DMV in North Carolina Number of tissue donors in the CDS service area Number of organ donors in the CDS service area In 2016, Carolina Donor Services staff and Friends for Life Ambassadors participated in more than 500 community events reaching more than 30,000 people. To date, almost 5 million North Carolinians have registered to be a donor! Will you help us reach this major milestone? Sign up today at your local DMV office or online at www.DonateLifeNC.org/Register . Please encourage your friends, family, colleagues and others to sign up, too! Danielle Niedfeldt, President/CEO Left to right: Burt Mattice, Tim Jankiewicz, Larry Cochran (holding photo of the late Bill Anderson) Lloyd Jordan and Scott Bottenfield celebrating Lloyd’s retirement. Kim Koontz, Vice President/COO WILL YOU HELP US REACH 5 MILLION?
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A NEWSLETTER FOR FRIENDS OF CAROLINA DONOR SERVICES, ORGAN AND T ISSUE
TRANSPLANT RECIPIENTS, DONOR FAMILIES, AMBASSADORS AND PROFESSIONALS.
PARTNERS FOR L IFE
LEADERSHIP CHANGES AT CDS Looking back on 2016, leadership change was certainly a prevalent theme, both on a national level as well as at Carolina Donor Services (CDS). As our nation was gearing up for congressional and presidential elections, Carolina Donor Services’ President and CEO, Lloyd Jordan, announced his retirement after 30 years of inspiring leadership. In late 2016, he was honored with a series of events attended by colleagues, friends and family who celebrated his many contributions in the organ donation and transplantation community and thanked him for his steadfast leadership over the last three decades.
Just before his retirement, Mr. Jordan announced his successor, saying, “I am pleased to share with you that, after a thorough and diligent process, the CDS Board of Directors has named Danielle Niedfeldt the new Chief Executive Officer. I couldn’t be more confident about the bright future of Carolina Donor Services under her leadership.”
A registered nurse and licensed attorney, Ms. Niedfeldt joined Carolina Donor Services in 1999 and has served in various positions. She was appointed Vice President/COO in 2008.
In December, Kim Koontz was promoted from Director of Tissue Services to the Chief Operating Officer position. She
has been with CDS for over 12 years.
“We are honored to be carrying on Lloyd’s legacy of unwavering dedication to organ and tissue donation,” said Ms. Niedfeldt. “His work on a national level and here in North Carolina brought about significant improvements which have positively impacted countless lives across the country,” she said.
The leadership team and staff at Carolina Donor Services feel very fortunate to have worked with Lloyd Jordan for many years. “Lloyd paved the way by creating strong relationships within our organization as well as with colleagues from across the country. Now, we’re building upon his successful efforts as we seek ways to continue to improve our service to our transplant centers and hospitals, other partners, communities and most importantly, our heroic donors and their families,” said Ms. Niedfeldt.
A Year in ReviewPRINTED MARCH 2017 2016
2016 Highlights
4,891,695
1,137,997
782
194
Total number of registered donors in North Carolina
Number of individuals who chose to register as a donor by adding or renewing a heart at the DMV in North Carolina
Number of tissue donors in theCDS service area
Number of organ donors in the CDS service area
In 2016, Carolina Donor Services staff and Friends for Life Ambassadors participated in more than 500 community events reaching more than 30,000 people. To date, almost 5 million North Carolinians have registered to be a donor! Will you help us reach this major milestone? Sign up today at your local DMV office or online at www.DonateLifeNC.org/Register. Please encourage your friends, family, colleagues and others to sign up, too!
Danielle Niedfeldt, President/CEO
Left to right: Burt Mattice, Tim Jankiewicz, Larry Cochran (holding photo of the late Bill Anderson) Lloyd Jordan and Scott Bottenfield celebrating Lloyd’s retirement.
Kim Koontz, Vice President/COO
WILL YOU HELP US REACH 5 MILLION?
Our CDS team and partners have much to be proud of looking back on the achievements and milestones of 2016 as we strive to meet our mission of maximizing the passing of the heroic gift of life from one human being to another. I’m truly grateful for the steadfast support that we continue to receive from many different partners – hospitals, transplant centers, funeral homes, Friends for Life Ambassadors, medical examiners, North Carolina Department of Motor Vehicles, emergency medical services, schools, faith organizations, civic groups and many other organizations and individuals.
In this issue of the Year In Review, we have highlighted some of these critical relationships as a way of recognizing and thanking those we depend upon to positively impact countless lives. However, a national waiting list of more than 118,000 people means that there’s always more that we need to do. Right here in our state, thousands of people – including almost 100 children and teens – are waiting for life-saving transplants. They are depending on us to maximize
the precious gifts of organ and tissue donation from our heroic donors.
One of the keys to fulfilling this urgent and ongoing need is to continually evaluate and improve our processes and services. In this passionate endeavor, we will continue to look to the extraordinary talents and determination of our dedicated staff. Having worked in many different roles at CDS over the years, I know that our staff members are the ones who can identify innovative improvements that will allow us, along with the continued strong collaboration of our partners, to save more lives, which is the ultimate way we can honor the extraordinary, selfless gifts of our donors. The future looks bright as we all remain committed to saving and enhancing more lives in 2017.
President/CEO
A LETTER FROM OUR PRESIDENT/CEO
David Miller, President of Miller Funeral Service in North Wilkesboro, has a remarkable perspective on organ donation. One Sunday several years ago, his girlfriend Carla (who is now his wife) announced that she was taking him to the Mayo Clinic. David was being treated locally for liver disease, but he was not responding to the medication and Carla feared that if they did nothing, he was going to die.
So with no referral and no appointment, but an abundance of determination and hope, they loaded the car and headed south. Nearing Jacksonville, Florida, they called the clinic and learned it was closed but decided to head straight to the emergency room.
Soon after David checked in, tests were performed and he was told to return on Monday for more exams along with consultations. Ultimately, David was placed on the waiting list for a liver transplant. David and Carla took up residence nearby. A new routine began, waiting for the alert to sound from the hospital. David was so grateful to get the call that a liver was available for him. He checked into the hospital and was prepped for surgery. As he went into the OR, the surgeon asked if he wanted to see his new liver. After seeing his chance at a healthy life, David helped himself onto the operating table. His next memory was awakening, very grateful to be alive.
David visited Carolina Donor Services shortly after his transplant as part of a training seminar. Dorman Caudle, Carolina Donor Services’ Funeral Home Liaison, suggested that David already knew
how the system worked since he had first-hand experience as a liver recipient. David responded that, while he knew the end result of these efforts, he appreciated leaning about how the donation journey begins as well as the many people involved in making donation happen.
Donation saved David’s life. In turn, he has been reaching out to others, promoting donation by sharing his story, putting up displays in his funeral home, proudly wearing his Donate Life lapel pin, and sporting personalized Donate Life license plates on his own vehicles. With his unique perspective as a funeral home professional and liver transplant recipient, David’s donation advocacy among his colleagues and families is truly invaluable.
David Miller and his wife, Carla
A Funeral Director’s Journey
Caption: Boles Funeral Home offers donor families the option to include donor information at their loved ones' visitation and funeral ceremony. Carolina Donor Services would like to work with funeral directors who are interested in offering these and other services to their donor families. Please contact CDS' Funeral Home Liaison Dorman Caudle at [email protected] for more information.
Boles Funeral Home offers donor families the option to include donor information at their loved ones' visitation and funeral ceremony. Carolina Donor Services would like to work with funeral directors who are interested in offering these and other services to their donor families. Please contact CDS' Funeral Home Liaison Dorman Caudle at [email protected] for more information.
Advancing Transplant Medicine Through RESEARCH
Carolina Donor Services believes that research plays a vital role in the advancement of transplant medicine because it has the capability of impacting the lives of thousands. As an organization, we support research that allows us to stay true to our mission, vision and values as a non-profit, humanitarian organization. Currently, we have a large number of partnerships with local, out-of-state and international researchers.
We are working with Principal Investigators at Duke University on a number of research projects including a project with Drs. Hartwig and Snyder exploring links between smoking exposure and recipient outcomes. We are also partnering with Duke on a number of studies regarding devices developed by TransMedics and OrganOx that are designed to increase transplant volume, improve patient outcomes and reduce cost of patient care. At Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine (WFIRM), we are working with Dr. Giuseppe Orlando whose lab is a pioneer in the area of regenerative medicine and the bioengineering of organs. At UNC-Chapel Hill, we have a long-standing relationship with Dr. Scott Randell who utilizes the cells from human lungs to better understand common lung diseases such as cystic fibrosis and asthma. We also have a research partnership with Dr. Korkut Uygun at Harvard University who is studying how to recreate human organs in the lab. All of this great research is made possible because of the generous gifts from our donors and our donor families.
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Full Circle: CONNECTING
DONOR FAMILIES & RECIPIENTS
Organ and tissue donor families and recipients sometimes choose to send correspondence to one another. The decision to communicate is personal and is completely up to each donor family or recipient to either initiate or reciprocate. Sometimes, donor families choose to write recipients and their families to share information about themselves and their loved one who has died. For some donor families, this helps them in their grieving process. In 2016, our Life Anew aftercare program forwarded approximately 500 pieces of correspondence to donors and recipients.
From time to time, some donor families meet the recipients of their loved one’s gifts in person. These interactions are often meaningful and valuable experiences for both parties. This typically happens after
several pieces of correspondence have been shared.
This past year, Carolina Donor Services was honored to help facilitate three meetings between donor families and recipients. Each meeting was unique and special for all who were able to attend. One such meeting gave liver recipient Mark Wilson the opportunity to meet his donor family. “This gift has truly saved my life. It was a precious meeting and I believe it was a blessing to all present,” said Wilson, who received his transplant at Duke in July 2015.
Carolina Donor Services’ Life Anew Coordinator facilitates all correspondence and meetings between donor families and recipients.
For more information, please visit www.CarolinaDonorServices.org/LifeAnew.
Liver recipient Mark Wilson (third from right) was joined by his wife, daughter and parents in meeting the family of his donor. The donor’s mother, Najmah Gaddy (second from right) was joined by
her husband, as well as the donor’s grandmother.
NEW AVENUES OF DONATIONWhen we’re talking with people in the community, we’re often asked, “What happens if I pass away at home? How will my decision to be a donor be carried out? How will CDS know?”
The answer to this question is one of the reasons that CDS has developed a new pilot project – a scene of death referral program through Emergency Medical Services (EMS). We know that most people do not pass away in a hospital. In fact, about 75% of deaths occur somewhere outside of the hospital, and these are not always referred to Carolina Donor Services. Consequently, those who pass away outside the hospital and are registered donors or whose families would like to donate, may not be provided this opportunity.
In an effort to change this, CDS is partnering with select counties to develop a new pilot project -- a scene of death referral program through EMS. This program will rely on EMS to notify CDS of deaths pronounced in the field and will be established in close collaboration with local law enforcement and medical examiners. Similar practices have been implemented by several other recovery organizations resulting in significant increases in tissue donation.
The counties where CDS is developing this new program currently include Alamance, Chatham, Durham, Franklin, Granville, Lee, Onslow, Orange, Person, Tyrrell, Wake and Washington. Chatham County has already implemented a referral program with others adjusting their policies and protocols to soon follow. CDS is very grateful for this partnership with EMS, law enforcement and medical examiners whose support and participation is critical to the successful implementation of this program.
In April, the UNC Hospitals transplant clinic officially changed its name to the Jason Ray Transplant Clinic in honor of the late Jason Ray who served as mascot for the North Carolina Tar Heels. Jason was an organ and tissue donor who saved and improved the lives of more than 100 people.
Charlene Sweigart listens to her granddaughter's heart beating inside Albert "Al-J" Jeffries at a donor family-recipient family meeting held at Carolina
Donor Services' Durham office in July. Photo from Edward Wilson,
Chief Photographer, WRAL-TV
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H O S P I T A L H A P P E N I N G S In 2016, Carolina Donor Services was among a select group of organ procurement organizations (OPOs) recognized nationally for partnering with hospitals in its service area to promote enrollment in North Carolina’s organ donor registry through a national campaign called the Workplace Partnership for Life (WPFL) Hospital Campaign. Sponsored by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), this campaign has resulted in the addition of 400,000 donor enrollments to state registries nationwide since 2011.
This campaign is a special effort to mobilize the nation’s hospitals to increase the number of people in the country registered as organ, eye and tissue donors. By uniting donation advocates at hospitals with representatives from local OPOs, Donate Life America affiliates, and state and regional hospital associations, the teams work together to leverage their communications resources and outreach efforts to most effectively spread the word about the critical need for donors.
Carolina Donor Services supported hospital partners throughout the campaign by providing a variety of resources and tools in order to assist in their donation education efforts and registration activities. Hospitals earned points for each activity implemented between May 2015 and April 2016 and were awarded platinum, gold, silver, or bronze recognition, accordingly.
If your hospital would like to join this effort, please contact Lora Smitherman at [email protected].
CAROLINA DONOR SERVICES IS VERY FORTUNATE TO HAVE HOSPITAL PARTNERS WHO ARE COMMITTED TO SAVING AND
IMPROVING LIVES THROUGH ORGAN, EYE AND TISSUE DONATION.
WakeMed Emergency Department nurse Naomi Askew received an award from CDS Hospital Development Specialist Steve Edwards for her
work promoting donation. Her son received a liver transplant in the summer of 2016.
Butterflies adorned hallways at New Hanover Regional Medical Center (NHRMC) to celebrate Donate Life Month with a “Wings of Flight” art contest between hospital departments. NHRMC had much to celebrate in 2016 including a record 26 ORGAN DONORS which resulted in 90 LIFE-SAVING ORGAN TRANSPLANTS.
On July 6, Duke Regional Hospital dedicated a Tree of Life Memorial to organ, tissue and eye donors. Reverend Lisa Cole, Director of Pastoral Care, (right) off iciated the ceremony and Karen Devine, a CDS Ambassador, (left) shared her story as a kidney/pancreas recipient.
Duke University Hospital celebrated Blue and Green Day on April 15, 2016, with games, karaoke and a Linking Hands Ceremony honoring organ, eye and tissue donors and their families. The following month, CDS was honored to be part of the very first hand transplant done in North Carolina. Duke surgeons completed the complex, 12-hour surgery on May 27, becoming one of only about 10 hospitals in the United States that has performed this type of transplant. On June 24, Duke University Hospital sponsored “Be A Hero! Workshop on Donation,” a day of learning about donation best practices, donor family support, clinical donor management and research opportunities.Speaker Jenna Caddell, CDS Preservation
Coordinator, in her Superwoman attire.
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H O S P I T A L H A P P E N I N G S IN CAROLINA DONOR SERVICES’ SERVICE
AREA, THE FOLLOWING 39 HOSPITALS AND TRANSPLANT CENTERS RECEIVED RECOGNITION:
Competition for the best Donate Life Month bulletin board at Cone Health, including Moses Cone, Alamance and Wesley Long
Carolina East Medical Center Carteret Healthcare
Duke University Medical Center Moses H. Cone Memorial Hospital
New Hanover Regional Medical CenterNovant Health Thomasville Medical Center
Randolph HospitalRex HealthcareUNC Hospitals
Vidant Beaufort HospitalVidant Bertie Hospital
Vidant Chowan HospitalVidant Medical Center
Watauga Medical Center
Cape Fear Valley Health SystemDanville Regional Medical Center
Duke Regional Hospital Frye Regional Medical Center
Nash Health Care SystemsVidant Edgecombe Hospital
Wake Forest Baptist Medical CenterWilson Medical Center
Alamance Regional Medical CenterCatawba Valley Medical Center
FirstHealth Moore Regional HospitalFirstHealth Moore Regional - Hoke CampusFirstHealth Richmond Memorial Hospital
Hugh Chatham Memorial HospitalNovant Health Forsyth Medical Center
Outer Banks HospitalSoutheastern Regional Medical CenterUNC Hospitals - Hillsborough Campus
Vidant Duplin HospitalWayne Memorial Hospital
Wesley Long Community Hospital
Charles A Cannon, Jr. Memorial HospitalDuke Raleigh Hospital
Onslow Memorial Hospital Sentara Albemarle Medical Center
PLATINUM
GOLD
SILVER
BRONZE
The Donate Life flag flies prominently at Vidant Medical Center (VMC) which topped the list of organ donor hospitals in the CDS service area in 2016. VMC also experienced significant improvements in a number of different rates CDS tracks to help improve the organ donation process. Some of the reasons for VMC’s success include the following factors: regular visits from CDS, an innovative reward program, involving additional departments in the donor referral process, and continuing emphasis on physician, resident, nurse and staff education through monthly lectures and inservices.
TOP DONOR HOSPITALS FOR 2016Top Organ Donor Hospitals*
Vidant Medical Center New Hanover Regional Medical Center
UNC Hospitals Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center
WakeMed*Based on the number of organ donors
Top Tissue Donor Hospitals**FirstHealth (Montgomery Memorial Hospital, Moore Regional-Hoke Campus & Richmond Memorial Hospital)
Alleghany Memorial Hospital Novant Health Brunswick Medical Center
Ashe Memorial Hospital, Inc. Lexington Medical Center-WFBH
**Based on the number of tissue donors divided by the number of referrals
In July 2016, UNC Hospitals hosted their Donation Advocacy Team Ambassador (DATA) Training on the school’s campus with over 40 staff attending including ICU nurses, chaplains, transplant staff and hospital management. The training provided education on the donation process from start to f inish. Graduates of the training
are considered the “go-to” people in their departments for donation-related questions and support. DATA Team members also assist with promoting donation and transplantation throughout the year.
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Fostering Collaboration: Medical Examiners and Carolina Donor Services
You may think you know what a medical examiner (ME) does since there are so many well-known ME characters on some of our favorite TV shows. But, the real life role of an ME is much more complex than what we see on TV. For example, did you know that the medical examiner plays a key role in the donation process?
Many opportunities for organ, tissue and eye donation arise in tragic circumstances that may require further investigation into the cause and manner of death. The medical examiner is responsible for these investigations. In many instances, this requires extensive involvement with law enforcement, medical providers, hospital staff, the decedent’s family and the organizations involved in facilitating the donation process. A medical examiner may deny or restrict donation from taking place if they feel it may impede a pending investigation. Therefore, ME support is essential to preserving
opportunities for organ, eye and tissue donation.Carolina Donor Services collaborates with more than 300 medical examiners and five regional autopsy centers which handle more complex cases as extensions of the North Carolina Office of The Chief Medical Examiner (OCME). In recent years, CDS has experienced unprecedented support and advocacy from the North Carolina Medical Examiner system and the positive impact has been dramatic.
Through this close collaboration, CDS has participated in 25 medical examiner orientation programs reaching over 500 medical examiners in an 18-month period, providing education on the donation process and its impact. The North Carolina Office of The Chief Medical Examiner and many medical examiners throughout the CDS service area have reciprocated these educational efforts. CDS’ staff have been trained in forensic photography, specimen and biopsy collection, evidence chain of custody
and documentation of findings pertinent to the ME investigation. These collaborative training opportunities have resulted in better understanding each others’ roles and responsibilities, as well as improved processes and relationships all around.
In 2016, this partnership resulted in a dramatic shift in donation outcomes on cases under medical examiner jurisdiction. There was a nearly 70% reduction in total medical examiner denials for donation, 14% more shared donor and medical examiner cases and an 85% increase in heart for valve donations on shared ME cases. These figures are important because they mean more lives were saved through organ, eye and tissue donation. CDS is very grateful for the support, efforts and advocacy of the many medical examiners we work with throughout our service area.
On Saturday, March 19, 2016, CDS hosted its annual Appreciation Dinner to honor and celebrate those who spread awareness about organ, eye and tissue donation including CDS Ambassadors; community and hospital partners; DMV employees; Donate Life North Carolina staff and board members; CDS staff and board members as well as other supporters. As attendees mingled, a slideshow showcased photographs of poignant moments captured at events since the last Appreciation Dinner.
Lloyd Jordan, CDS’ President/CEO, and Dawn Hall, Director of Communications, welcomed everyone and thanked them for their dedicated service. The evening’s keynote speaker, Dr. Sandra Coley, a donor mother and CDS Ambassador, shared heartfelt words about her son, D Jay, his precious gift of life and just how meaningful it is to her to educate the community about donation. Long-serving CDS Ambassador, Chuck Steffan, who passed away the previous year, was honored. Longtime, passionate volunteer and living donor, Monique Martin, was awarded the 2016 Charles Jefferies Donate Life Award for her tireless service and dedication.
It was an inspirational evening honoring all of the dedicated supporters who play a critical role in educating members of the community about donation and encouraging them to register as organ, eye and tissue donors.
SERVING UP THANKS (Left to right front row) Amy Stuart, Henry Stuart,
Michael Stuart(Left to right back row)
Bruce Howell, Kathy Stuart
Longtime Ambassadors Jackie and Michael Brown, Sr.,
of Jacksonville
(Left to right)Shantesa Jones, Yvonne Martin,
Megan Harris, Mariah Harris (in front) and Monique Martin,
CDS’ 2016 Charles Jeffries Donate Life Award recipient
Are you a donor family member or recipient interested in sharing your story and our life-saving message in your community? If so, we would love for you to attend one of our Friends for Life Ambassador trainings. Friends for Life Ambassadors are passionate advocates who contribute in many ways to help educate the public about organ, eye and tissue donation. For more information, please visit www.CarolinaDonorServices.org/Volunteer.
In 2008, I was a New York City police officer working in the Bronx for the 50th Precinct. That April, I became sick with symptoms that resembled an upper respiratory infection -- shortness of breath, difficulty breathing and wheezing. I visited four different doctors and kept getting the same “upper respiratory infection” diagnosis with prescribed antibiotics.
I finally saw a doctor who decided that an echocardiogram should be done. The results were so bad that the doctor would not let me leave the office. She called an ambulance and had me transported directly to the hospital. A thousand questions went through my mind on that ambulance ride: would I die, what will happen to my wife, will my two-year-old daughter still have a father, is my career over?
I spent five days in the hospital undergoing what seemed like hundreds of tests. The doctors told me that I was in heart failure caused by viral myocarditis, a virus that attacked and damaged my heart. Hearing this I knew my life was changed forever.
After the initial shock, I began thinking about all of my responsibilities and how being hospitalized with heart failure affected them. My first call was to my work precinct. I remember how sympathetic my desk sergeant was. Everyone hears how being a cop is like being in a big, extended family, but it’s hard to fully appreciate until something major happens in your life and those brothers and sisters in blue rally. I must have gotten 30 to 40 phone calls that first night from different people I had worked with throughout the years.
Heart failure patients get placed on a number of medications to help regulate the heart. In some cases the medication helps allowing the heart to function normally. In my case, this did not happen, so I was placed on the national transplant waiting list. To keep me alive while waiting for a transplant, surgeons implanted a mechanical heart pump device called an LVAD (left ventricular assist device) in my chest. Being dependent on the LVAD and not knowing if or when I would get a new heart ended any chances of continuing with the department, so I retired from the NYPD in 2012 but they were very good to me and my family.
Two years passed before I finally got the call for a transplant. I had so many mixed emotions but chief among them was sorrow for the person who lost their life. I learned that the donor was a woman and her family generously chose to donate her organs.
My wife and I rushed to the hospital to await my transplant. A little while later, my surgeon came to let me know that it was not my time. I’m a big guy and he explained that the donor’s heart was too small for my frame. Luckily, there was someone else waiting who could receive the heart transplant.
Afterward, my wife and I talked about the experience and how having the false alarm was good in a way. It allowed me to see what getting the call would be like and how my wife and I would be able to deal with it. Also, it eased my mind knowing that my wife and kids had a strong support system.
A couple months later, I got my second call. This was the real deal and I was better prepared for it. After the 16-hour operation, I was in the hospital for a month. As the months passed, I became stronger and more like myself before I got sick.
Shortly after reaching the one-year anniversary of my transplant, my wife talked about moving to North Carolina to be closer to my side of the family. She pointed out that there are excellent transplant programs in the state and soon my family was heading south.
I worried about getting back to work, but my prayers were answered with a job as a driver license examiner with the North Carolina Department of Motor Vehicles (NCDMV). The best part about working for the NCDMV is that I get to talk to people about donation every day and interact with truly selfless people who are willing to share a part of themselves with total strangers. My donor is one of the most important people in my life. I never had the chance to thank him for his gift to me and my family, but I’m so grateful that my new job gives me the opportunity to thank each and every donor who sits at my desk.
A Message from the Heart
DONATE LIFE NORTH CAROLINACELEBRATES DMV ACHIEVEMENT
Each year, Donate Life North Carolina (Donate Life NC) celebrates those DMV Driver License Offices that go the extra mile to promote organ, eye and tissue donation. Donate Life NC gives annual awards to stations in each DMV district with the highest donor designation rates and with the greatest annual improvement. DMV driver license examiners play a key role in the donation process. Examiners ask each license/ID card customer if they wish to be a donor. Over 98% of donor registrations come directly from the DMV. So, the next time you're at a NCDMV Driver License Office, be sure to tell the examiners "thank you" for all they do to save lives. Here are the 2016 winners:
DISTRICT 1Highest Rate - Morehead City (74.5%)
Also, highest rate in NC!Highest Increase - Morehead City (4.9%)
As of March 2, 2017. For updated information, go to www.optn.org. Some patients are waiting for more than one organ; therefore the total number of patients is less than the sum of the patients waiting for each organ.
Donation Fast FactsIt is estimated that nearly 33,600 patients began new lives in 2016 thanks to organ transplants.
About 58% of patients awaiting lifesaving transplants are minorities.
More than 80% of those waiting are in need of a kidney transplant.
Another person is added to the nation's organ transplant waiting list every 10 minutes.
Sadly, 8,000 people die each year - 22 people each day - due to the lack of available organs.
Each year, there are approximately 30,000 tissue donors and more than 1 million tissue transplants; the surgical need for donated tissue is steadily rising.
A single donor can save or enhance the lives of more than 50 people.
More than 130 million people, approximately half of the US adult population, are registered organ, eye and tissue donors.
95% of Americans support organ donation, but only about 50% are registered donors. Help close the gap by registering today!
Data from the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN) through December 31, 2016.
In October of 2016, Carolina Donor Services held Celebration of Life ceremonies in Raleigh, Greenville and Winston-Salem. A total of 356 donor family members attended to honor their loved ones as well as all organ and tissue donors.
Inspiration was drawn from the painting entitled “Hope Take Flight” by Marlene Lewis. When viewed vertically, the painting appears to be an hourglass that reminds the observer of the race against time that potential recipients may experience. Horizontally, this same painting becomes a butterfly. This image reminds us of the transformative power of hope. Each donor gives hope to recipients through saying “yes” to donation. Donor families can experience hope through the legacy of their loved ones.
During these ceremonies, donor family members had the opportunity to talk about their loved ones, present quilt squares, and view the donor tribute slideshow. Each quilt square will be combined with those of other donor families and assembled to make donor family quilts, which will be on display at the 2017 Celebration of Life services. Quilts are also displayed at memorial services, special events and educational programs across North Carolina.
Donor families were delighted to hear from recipients at each ceremony. Keith Overcash attended the Winston-Salem ceremony, Joshua Winstead attended the Raleigh ceremony and Crystal Sharpe attended the Greenville ceremony. These speakers represent all recipients in their words of thanks, sharing condolences and speaking about how their lives have been affected by donation. These recipients also each serve as a Friends for Life Ambassador.
We look forward to honoring donors during this year’s Celebration of Life services, which will be held in the fall of 2017.
