April is National Donate Life Month (NDLM), a special time of year where people come together to raise awareness for organ, tissue, and cornea donations. This year, Allegheny Health Network is participating in Donate Life Month celebrations. AHN will have several events held across 10 hospitals including Allegheny General, Allegheny Valley, Canonsburg, Forbes, Grove City, Jefferson, Saint Vincent, West Penn, Wexford, and Hempfield Neighborhood Hospital to encourage staff, patients, and visitors to learn more about organ donation and how to become a registered organ donor.
According to the Center for Organ Recovery & Education (CORE), over 100,000 people across the nation are waiting for a life-saving transplant. One person can save the lives of as many as eight people through organ donation and heal the lives of as many as 75 people through tissue donation.
Through the Covid-19 pandemic, AHN has remained committed to providing life-saving care for everyone who has needed it, including organ transplant candidates. In 2021, AHN saved or improved lives through organ, tissue, and cornea donations thanks to the generous gifts of 250 donors across it’s hospitals. Last year, Allegheny General Hospital’s highly skilled surgical team performed 24 heart, 43 liver, and 102 kidney transplants.
“Allegheny Health Network is committed to raising awareness of organ donation and registration to bring more live-saving transplants to the individuals who need it most. Last year, AHN helped register more than 1,100 organ donors during Donate Life Month,” said Cynthia Hundorfean, president, and CEO at Allegheny Health Network. “This month is an important time for the Network to come together to honor those who have made the selfless decision to give the gift of life and recognize our dedicated and talented group of transplant clinicians and caregivers that provide high-quality, compassionate transplant care.”
“National Donate Life Month is a time when we celebrate the power of organ, tissue and cornea donation to save and heal lives;” said Susan Stuart, president & CEO of CORE, “when we recognize the partnerships between CORE and the hospitals, we serve that made possible nearly 700 life-saving organ transplants in 2021; and when we mobilize and inspire our local communities to register as donors. Most importantly, National Donate Life Month is a time when we honor the selfless donors and their courageous families who make the decision to give the gift of life.”
Among the month’s highlights, AHN will have flag raising and rose garden ceremonies at each hospital where hospital leadership, transplant patients and donor families come together to share their journey. Throughout the month, hospitals will also invite employees to “Step Up and Give a Hand,” by pledging their support of organ donation with a colorful handprint display.
Additional activities include celebrating “Donate Life Living Donor Day” on April 6, and “National Donate Life Blue and Green Day” on April 22. Living Donor Day thanks all donors for their lifesaving generosity. On National Donate Life Blue and Green Day, employees will be asked to wear blue and green attire to show their support for organ donation, and many of the organization’s facilities will be illuminated with blue and green lights including the Highmark Health spire at Fifth Avenue Place.
Donate Life Activities:
- Allegheny General Hospital: Flag Raising Ceremony on Friday, April 1 at 10:00 a.m.; Rose Garden Ceremony on Monday, April 25 at 1:00 p.m.
- Allegheny Valley Hospital: Flag Raising Ceremony on Monday, April 4 at 11:00 a.m.
- Forbes Hospital: Flag Raising Ceremony on Tuesday, April 5 at 10 a.m.
- Wexford Hospital: Flag Raising Ceremony on Wednesday, April 6 at 9:00 a.m.; Rose Garden Ceremony on Tuesday, April 26 at 2:00 p.m.
- West Penn Hospital: Flag Raising Ceremony on Thursday, April 7 at 2:00 p.m.; Rose Garden Ceremony on Monday, April 18 at 1:00 p.m.
- Canonsburg Hospital: Flag Raising Ceremony on Friday, April 8 at 10 a.m.
- Saint Vincent Hospital: Flag Raising Ceremony on Monday, April 11 at 10 a.m.
- Grove City Hospital: Flag Raising Ceremony on Thursday, April 14 at 11:00 a.m.
- Hempfield Neighborhood Hospital: Flag Raising Ceremony on Wednesday, April 20 at 11 a.m.
- Jefferson Hospital: Flag Raising Ceremony on Monday, April 25 at 1:00 p.m.
About Allegheny Health Network
Allegheny Health Network (AHN.org), a Highmark Health company, is an integrated healthcare delivery system serving the greater Western Pennsylvania region. The Network is composed of 14 hospitals, ambulatory surgery centers, Health + Wellness Pavilions, an employed physician organization, home and community-based health services, a research institute and a group purchasing organization. The Network provides patients with access to a complete spectrum of advanced medical services, including nationally recognized programs for primary and emergency care, cardiovascular disease, cancer care, orthopedic surgery, neurology and neurosurgery, women’s health, diabetes and more. AHN employs approximately 21,000 people, has more than 2,600 physicians on its medical staff and serves as a clinical campus for Drexel University College of Medicine and the Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine.
About CORE
The Center for Organ Recovery & Education (CORE) is one of 57 federally designated not-for-profit organ procurement organizations (OPOs) in the United States, serving more than five million people in western Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Chemung County, New York. CORE coordinates the recovery and matching of organs, tissues and corneas for transplant within our service region, and works tirelessly to create a culture of donation within the hospitals and communities we serve. CORE’s mission is to Save and Heal lives through donation, ultimately ending the deaths of those on the transplant waiting list, while maintaining integrity for the donation process, dignity for the donors, and compassion for their families. CORE is a winner of the 2019 Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award, a presidential award that recognizes nonprofits for their innovation and excellence. For more information, visit www.core.org or call 1-800-DONORS-7.
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