For the third year in a row, the U-M Health System (UMHS) Transplant Center has been awarded the Organ Donation Medal of Honor from the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services for its success in raising organ donation rates.
In addition, the Transplant Center has joined a new initiative, the Transplant Growth and Management Collaborative, which aims to dramatically increase the number of deceased donor organs transplanted at each hospital.
The honor and news of the collaborative were announced during the third annual National Learning Congress on Organ Donation and Transplantation in Nashville, Tenn.
The center earned the recognition by collaborating with its Gift of Life Michigan partners to achieve the national goal of converting at least 75 percent of eligible deaths into actual organ donors. Each organ and tissue donor can save the lives of up to eight people and enhance the lives of 50 more.
The U-M Transplant Center is one of 17 Michigan medical facilities to receive the Medal of Honor for organ donation this year. Its work with Gift of Life is helping to try to close the gap in Michigan between the number of organ donors and the more than 3,200 residents in need of a life-saving organ transplant. Last year, there were a record 292 organ donors in Michigan hospitals, leading to 905 transplants.
