We have the most amazing jobs! As Living Donor Coordinators at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, we receive phone calls and emails from the most courageous and genuine individuals willing to donate a kidney or a segment of their liver to a child. Some of these donor candidates have a direct relationship with the recipient, while others hear about the need via social media. Regardless, they are willing to assume the risk of unnecessary surgery to give these kids a chance at life! Because of this, we do our very best to educate and support our donor candidates throughout the entire process. We rely on their feedback before and after donation so we can continue to streamline our process and provide the best care and support possible.
Our children in need of a kidney transplant are given the choice to be placed on a deceased donor waitlist. Their families are also given the option to pursue living donation. Without living donors, these kids may wait months to years for a deceased donor kidney. Some of these children may need dialysis while they wait. Living donation can improve the quality of life for these children by enabling them to avoid dialysis or minimizing the amount of time spent on dialysis.
Our children in need of a liver transplant are also placed on the deceased donor waitlist. They have two options as well, receiving a liver from a deceased donor or a segment of a liver from a living donor. There is a huge difference between those with liver disease versus kidney disease. Unfortunately, there hasn’t been a form of treatment discovered to do the work of the liver as dialysis does for a kidney. Living donation can ultimately save the life of a child that doesn’t have the luxury of time to wait!
We want to do our best to spread the word that there continues to be a growing need for individuals that are willing to be living donors. Please consider being a living donor! You could improve or save the life of a child!
Laura and Marty
