Twenty-one hospitals were recognized by UW Organ and Tissue Donation this year for their ongoing commitment to saving and improving lives through organ and tissue donation. UW Organ and Tissue Donation is a federally-designated organ procurement organization serving more than 100 hospitals in Wisconsin, Michigan and Illinois. Each year, the organization presents five different awards to hospitals and staff for excellence in maximizing the gift of life. SSM Health St. Agnes Hospital was given an Excellence in Tissue Donation Award, as well as a bronze Award of Hope. Kristy Krause, MSN, RN, nursing director and hospital liaison for UW-OTD, and Emily Hoepfner, MSN, RN, nursing director, accepted the honors. “These awards showcase the hard work, dedication, and extensive collaboration that exists among the teams at SSM Health St. Agnes Hospital, as they work together to make donation a reality for both donor heroes and recipients,” according to Krause. “We were extremely honored to accept the awards on behalf of everyone at SSM Health St. Agnes Hospital who has an impact on organ donation.” The UW Organ and Tissue Donation Award of Hope recognizes the comprehensive work of hospitals that achieve or exceed goals that maximize the gift of life. The three measurements for receiving the award are referral rate, the true conversion rate, which calculates the percent of medically eligible donors that become actual donors; and organs transplanted per donor or an Observed/Expected rate, which evaluates the average number of organs recovered from each donor. The Excellence in Tissue Donation Award is given to partner hospitals that achieve at least a 63% consent rate. This metric measures the collaborative work between the hospital staff and tissue bank in coordinating communication around tissue consent conversations. “The clinical management of donor heroes, coupled with a hospital’s compassionate support of donor families, is a critical component to saving lives through the gift of organ donation and transplantation,” according to Michael Anderson, executive director of UW Organ and Tissue Donation. “We honor these hospitals and their incredible physicians and nursing teams for working so hard to help ensure that those who are waiting for a transplant will get a second chance at life.”
