The CEO of the David Foster Foundation spoke to Arctic Radio about Organ and Tissue Donation Awareness Month.

 

Michael Ravenhill says there’s currently over 44 hundred patients waiting for a lifesaving organ transplant in the country.

 

He adds that while 90 per cent of Canadians support organ donation, only 32 per cent are registered.

 

Ravenhill highlights some of the hesitancies people may have when it comes to signing up to be an organ and tissue donor.

 

“One would be misinformation or education. The other is people are concerned that if they are on the registration list and they are ill in the hospital, will the medical team let them die so that they can give their organs. This is completely not true, that’s not how it works in the medical system. Doctors and front line workers are there to save our lives. So many times I hear people say ‘Well, I may be too old, nobody wants any of my organs because I’ve done things in life that would make my body not a perfect specimen.’ That’s not the case either because there are so many organs and tissues that can be used in a body to help save a life.”

 

Ravenhill says one organ donor can save up to eight lives and benefit the quality of life for up to 75 people.

 

For more information, listen to Thompson Today at 12:40 and 5:10 this afternoon.