Dr. Gabbe reflects on the arrival of Spring and how everyone can give the "Gift of Life" during Donate Life Month.
Hi! In April, we look outside or walk outside and see the signs or spring and of new life. And that is especially evident this week on the Medical Center plaza where 6,500 pinwheels have been planted to bring awareness to organ and tissue donation and Ohio State’s transplant program.
Ohio State has performed life-saving transplants for over four decades and has been a nationally recognized leader in solid organ, heart and lung transplantation. The Comprehensive Transplant Center’s innovative research in organ rejection and immunosuppressants has revolutionized transplant surgery, making transplantation possible for a vast number of seriously ill patients. Of course, we cannot help the thousands of people in Ohio waiting for a transplant without the generous "Gift of Life" from organ and tissue donors.
April has been designated Donate Life Month to raise awareness about the need for organ and tissue donation. One organ donor can save the lives of up to eight critically ill people. And one tissue donor can add quality to the lives of up to 50 more. Each pinwheel on our plaza represents a life-saving transplant performed here at the Ohio State University Medical Center, the only adult transplant program in Central Ohio.
You can give the "Gift of Life" in one of two ways: Register your decision to be a donor in the Ohio Organ Donor Registry or simply say "yes" the next time you visit the Bureau of Motor Vehicles to review your driver’s license or identification card.
You can visit lifelineofohio.org for more information about organ and tissue donation.
For information about living kidney donation and transplantation, please call the Ohio State University Comprehensive Transplant Center’s pretransplantion services at 293-6724, that’s 293-6724, or visit the Medical Center website.
Another group of people here at the Medical Center that have a major impact on people’s lives is our volunteers. This week, we are celebrating Volunteer Week and I’d like to say "thank you" to the volunteers who give their time in more than 170 areas in our hospitals, our clinics and our offices. The dedication these outstanding individuals show is greatly appreciated. Take some time this week to say "thank you" to our volunteers.
Have a great week.