LifePoint is Notified

Potential organ, tissue and/or eye donors….
Highly skilled Donor Coordinators staff our LifePoint Communications Center. They receive referral calls from hospital employees whenever anyone who has sustained a traumatic brain injury and meets specified clinical criteria is at a South Carolina hospital for treatment. Causes for such injuries are often a car accident, a gunshot wound, a fall or a bleed on the brain.

Because the LifePoint Communications Center is staffed around-the-clock, there is always someone available to receive the call and to relay the pertinent info to another LifePoint colleague who serves as an Administrator On Call (AOC). The AOC’s first concern is to dispatch a LifePoint Family Support Counselor (FSC) to the hospital who can provide emotional support to the family of the person who has been injured.

If these patients progress to brain death, their families often have the end-of-life option to choose organ, tissue and eye donation.

Potential tissue and/or eye donors…
Donor Coordinators also receive calls from the acute care hospitals, coroner’s offices, nursing homes, hospice personnel and funeral homes for the entire state of South Carolina regarding patient’s who have been declared dead (cardiac death). The Donor Coordinators determine the person’s medical suitability as a potential tissue and/or eye donor. They then counsel families about their end-of-life options regarding tissue and eye donation.

The goal of the Communications Center is to provide detailed information regarding the potential for donation through a compassionate approach, and then to facilitate the wishes of families who desire donation, provided their loved one meets the criteria for donation.

If consent is obtained, the Donor Coordinators arrange for the LifePoint Tissue Recovery Coordinators to recover the eyes and tissues.

Home Deaths & Donation

Potential tissue and/or eye donors…
Terminally ill patients should talk to their next of kin and explain their end-of-life wishes regarding donation. Keep in mind that if you die at home you will not have the option of organ donation but can be considered for tissue and eye donation.

At the time of the patient’s death, the next-of-kin or hospice personnel will need to initiate the donation process by calling LifePoint’s donor referral line any time of day at 800-269-9777. A Donor Coordinator will answer the call and obtain information regarding the patient’s age and medical history. From this information, the Donor Coordinator can determine eligibility for donation and guide the donation process from there.

Next Step >> Support at the Hospital