Friday is National Blue and Green Day, and everyone is encouraged to wear blue and green to promote the importance of registering to become an organ donor.
Organ donation saves thousands of lives across Texas each year.
Still, there are more than 100,000 people waiting for a life-saving transplant in the U.S.
Dr. Adam Bingaman, a medical director at Methodist Hospital Specialty and Transplant, which has the largest living donor kidney transplant program in the nation, encourages the community to pay it forward and register to become an organ donor.
Choosing to donate an organ is a life-changing decision for both the donor and the recipient – and it can inspire other ordinary people to do extraordinary things.
“We ask folks, you know, talk to your family, talk to your friends, neighbors, faith group members or create a social media page to get the word out to see if you can find a living donor,” Bingaman said. “We run the largest living donor kidney transplant program in the entire United States. And we’ve done that out of the great need for kidney transplants here in South Texas.”
The transplant team at Methodist Healthcare has developed multiple leading transplant programs for recipients in need of kidney, liver, pancreas and heart transplants. The robust team of experts can guide donors and recipients through the process.
Options for organ donation
Deceased organ donation is when an organ is given at the time of the donor’s death. At the end of your life, you can choose to give the gift of life to someone else.
A living donation saves two lives: The recipient and the next person on the wait-list for a life-saving deceased organ. Patients who are able to receive living kidney transplants are getting the best quality organ in sometimes less than a year.
“We’ve built the largest program in the United States based on safe safety for our donors in a quality program,” Bingaman said.
In 2020, Methodist Hospital Specialty and Transplant performed 208 living kidney transplant surgeries, the most in the U.S.
To sign up to become an organ donor, click or tap here.