Earlier this year Canadians got to know a vivacious and eloquent Ottawa woman, Helene Campbell, who became the youthful symbol of organ donation.
Her joy in receiving a double-lung transplant this spring was shared by millions as she appeared on The Ellen DeGeneres Show.
Her video dance moves aside, Campbell’s message is a serious one: Hundreds of Canadians die every year awaiting transplants that never materialize. By the end of 2010, there were 310 Canadians like Campbell waiting for lung transplants, in year that saw only 179 such operations performed.
Over the past five years, the number of transplant operations remained static while the demand for organs — in particular kidneys — continues to climb. The number of kidney failures has doubled over the past 20 years and the cost of ongoing dialysis, which far outweighs the price of a transplant operation, poses yet another funding burden on the health care system.
It is galling to see Canada near the bottom of the standings of transplant donation rates among First World countries, which doesn’t square with our self-image as a kind and caring people.
But it isn’t all about generosity. Put some of that down to clean living. Canadians are more likely to fasten their seatbelts, we’re less likely to suffer sudden, violent death and we take better care of ourselves than many countries boasting higher levels of organ donation.
Read more: http://www.torontosun.com/2012/06/16/the-ultimate-parting-gift
{Register to be an organ,eye and tissue donor. To learn how, www.donatelife.net or www.organdonor.gov}
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