The Kin Organ Donor Awareness Campaign (Kin-ODAC) was adopted in 2001 as Kin’s first National Public Awareness Project. Andrew Hatfield, a St. John's East Kin Kid, was born with a complex congenital heart disease died waiting for a heart transplant; however, his dream of Kin helping other transplant hopefuls became Kin-ODAC.
Organ donation can mean the difference between life and death for many people. For others, such as people with renal (kidney) disease, it represents a total transformation in their quality of life because they will no longer need four-hour dialysis treatments three days a week. Organ donation from one person can save the lives of up to eight people. A single tissue donor can improve the lives of up to 40 people.
Kin-ODAC is an extension of our partnership with Cystic Fibrosis Canada because most people with cystic fibrosis eventually need a lung transplant to live.
Canada’s National Organ Donor Awareness Week is the last full week in April. For Kin members, it’s a time to increase our awareness about organ donation issues and extend that education throughout the communities we call home.
Did you know that only 15 out of every 1,000,000 Canadians are organ donors? It's true.
- Canada has some of the best transplant technologies in the world; however, there are never enough organs available to save all of the people on the waiting list.
- According to the Canadian Association of Transplantation, there were an estimated 4,330 people in Canada on the waiting list for a life-saving organ transplant in 2008. A total of 2,083 transplants took place during the year and 1,541 were made possible thanks to just 486 deceased donors. Unfortunately, 303 people died while waiting for a transplant.
More Facts
- Canada's organ donation rate ranks in the bottom half of countries in the western world where transplants are performed.
- Even though organ donations in Canada increased in the first decade of the 21st Century, the increase was mostly due to live donations (i.e. someone donating one of their kidneys to a family member).
Talk to your family!
Too few Canadians talk about their decision to donate their organs and/or tissues with their families. Even if you have documented your wishes -- by filling out your province’s organ donor card or registering through a provincial registry -- it is vital that your family knows about your decision. In most provinces, hospital staff will still, out of respect, talk with the next-of-kin of potential donors about what their loved one requested.
There's good news
- Canada has some of the most highly-skilled surgeons and prestigious transplant hospitals
- Nearly 98% of all kidney transplants, 90% of liver transplants and 85% of heart transplants are successful
- 2,083 life-saving organ transplants were performed in Canadian hospitals in 2008
- Donor families say they are comforted by the feeling that their loved one's death was not in vain
Links to Resources and Organ Donation Registries
You might have questions involving the donation of one’s tissue or organs such as: Can I donate one organ but not all? What is the success rate of transplantation? Is my age a factor? Is organ donation expensive? All these questions and many more are answered on these sites:
Links and Resources
Canadian Association of Transplantation
Canadian Transplant Association
Ontario - Register Online
Cystic Fibrosis Canada
Canadian Liver Foundation
University of Ottawa Heart Institute
Since health care is a provincial matter in Canada, every province has its own ways of handling organ donor registries. Here are many provincial links (and don't forget to tell your family about your wishes!):
Yukon Transplant
(867) 667-3673
British Columbia Transplant Society
(604) 877-2240 or 1-800-663-6189
Northern Alberta, Northwest Territories and Nunavut
H.O.P.E. (Human Organ Procurement Exchange)
Edmonton 1-866-407-1970
Southern Alberta
H.O.P.E. (Human Organ Procurement Exchange)
1-800-667-7551Calgary (403) 283-2243
Saskatchewan Health
Saskatoon (306) 655-5054
Regina (306) 766-6477
Manitoba Transplant
(204) 787-1897
Organ Donation Ontario
1-800-263-2833, (416) 351-7328
Quebec Transplant
1-877-463-6366
Atlantic Provinces
(902) 496-7008 or 1-800-563-8880
Newfoundland and Labrador
(709) 777-1300
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We acknowledge the financial support of the
Department of Canadian Heritage.
