As of December, 2011, six million Floridians now are reported as registered organ, tissue and eye donors on Florida’s Joshua Abbott Organ and Tissue Donor Registry. This news comes as another milestone, more than 100 million registered donors, was reached nationally as of October 11, 2011.
“Florida’s registry is the second most populous in the country, and as a result, patients in need of life-saving transplants in Florida have shorter waiting times, on average,” says Ruth Bell, chairwoman of Donate Life Florida. “Every time someone registers to become a donor on Florida’s registry, they are saying they would like to one day save as many as eight lives and impact dozens more.”
This incredible accomplishment is a testament to our human nature and our willingness to work together for the greater good, even at times of great national trial. As Donate Life Florida celebrates such an achievement, the need for donor organs continues to rise. More than 112,000 men, women and children nationwide, more than 4,000 of whom are right here in Florida, await life-saving organ transplants today. Thousands more await needed tissue transplants to resume their normal lives.
In order to continue saving lives, new registry enrollment goals have been set. By the end of 2012, Donate Life Florida hopes to have more than 6.4 million Floridians registered, contributing to a national goal of an additional 20 million more registered donors by the end for 2012. The public is encouraged to join those already registered as organ, eye and tissue donors by visiting www.DonateLifeFlorida.org today and documenting their wishes or saying “yes” to donation when renewing or getting their driver license or state identification card.
Donate Life Florida is a non-profit organization dedicated to empowering the public to save and enhance lives through organ and tissue donation as well as other life-saving donations, such as blood and marrow. LifeNet Health of Florida is a member of Donate Life Florida and serves on the Board.