Donate Life Illinois

Celebrate National Donor Sabbath This Weekend

November 12, 2009

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November 13-15 marks the official celebration of National Donor Sabbath – a time for members of faith communities to focus on the life-affirming gifts of hope passed to others by organ, eye, tissue, marrow and blood donors.

Nationwide, faith leaders will participate in services and programs to educate their congregations about donation and transplantation and the critical need for donors. Unfortunately, misconceptions about religious views on organ donation continue to be a major barrier to registration. You can check out a comprehensive list of religious views on donation on organdonor.gov and I’ve also included a video below that provides insight from Gift of Hope.

Hop over to Gift of Hope’s site to learn how to participate in National Donor Sabbath in Illinois and also check out this post from our colleague Glenn on the Donate Life blog to learn more.

-Scott

Leave a Comment » | Donate Life America | Tagged: education, faith community, National Donor Sabbath, organ donation, organ donor, outreach, Recipient, religion, transplant | Permalink
Posted by Scott Meis

Donate Life Illinois Campus Challenge – Week 5 Update

November 11, 2009

Thanks to student involvement on campuses across the state, we have registered more than 1,000 lifesaving organ/tissue donors in this year’s Challenge!

One week remains and Kankakee Community College still holds on to the top spot. Following very close behind is University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and Eastern Illinois University. We’re definitely in for a close race to the end!

This past week, The Journal Gazette in Mattoon published this excellent story and this great great editorial that discusses EIU’s involvement in the Challenge, mentioning a recent campus presentation from Joslyn Osten, senior public education coordinator with Gift of Hope Organ & Tissue Donor Network.

Stayed tuned for final results next week and the announcement of the winning schools!

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Total = 1,008 lifesaving registrations!

Leave a Comment » | Campus Campaign, Donate Life Illinois | Tagged: 2009 campus challenge, college, donor, eastern illinois university, kankakee community college, organ donation, students, university of illinois | Permalink
Posted by Scott Meis

Transplant Surgeon Named on Crain’s 40 Under 40

November 10, 2009

Dr. Caicedo

Last week, Crain’s Chicago Business released their annual 40 Under 40 list that honors 40 hardworking, inspiring innovators in Chicago’s professional community.

One of the honorees this year is Dr. Jaun Carlos Caicedo – a transplant surgeon and Director of Northwestern Memorial Hospital’s Hispanic Transplant Program.

Dr. Caicedo spearheaded a team of 20 bilingual staff to better assist with Hispanic patient care and to help educate family members about the transplant process. His work has payed off in a big way as he has helped nearly double the number of Hispanic patients who have received a kidney transplant since 2006.

Hop over to Crain’s 40 under 40 site at the link above to check out a great video from Dr. Caicedo on his work. Congrats Dr. Caicedo!

-Scott