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Essay about The Process of Organ and Blood Donation

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“To the world you may be one person, but to one person you may be the world.” (Anonymous) Why should people donate? People should donate organs and blood because one organ can save up to eight lives. That same donor can save or improve up to fifty people’s lives. (Unknown) More than 119,000 people are waiting for transplants each year, and that is just in the U.S. alone. (Unknown) Eighteen people die every day because they are waiting for organs and/or blood transplants. (Unknown) Each year, thousands of people die because of the need for an organ transplant or blood donation. (Unknown) Contrary to popular belief, you don’t have to be dead to be a donor! You can be a living donor! To be a living donor you must be over the age of …show more content…

(Unknown) Some people think that if they become an organ donor they will not be able to have an open casket funeral. (staff) This is not true. Organ donation is done so that there is minimal disfigurement to the body. Plus, the body is clothed in the casket so there are typically no visible signs of the transplant or donation.
What can be donated? This is another question frequently asked by people. You are eligible to donate eyes, heart and heart valves, lungs, liver, kidneys, intestines, pancreas, skin, bone, tendons and even femoral and saphenous veins. More than 290 people await hearts, fifty await lungs, 130 await livers, ten await intestines, one hundred await pancreases, and one hundred await both kidneys and pancreases. 8,370 await kidneys alone! Only one kidney is needed to live and sometimes people wait for kidneys anywhere from three to five years. In 2012, we had 315 kidneys donated, 194 livers, sixty four hearts, twenty eight lungs, twenty three pancreases, and four intestines. (Unknown)
A question that is frequently asked is, “How do I make sure my organs get donated?” Put your wishes in writing! Put it in your will! Make sure that if you designate someone to make your healthcare decisions for you, they know your wishes. If you are under the age of eighteen, or over for that matter, it is very important to make sure your family members know that you want to donate. The deciding factor on what happens to you goes to your next

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