Three ThedaCare hospitals were recently recognized by University of Wisconsin Organ and Tissue Donation for the ongoing commitment to saving and improving lives through organ and tissue donation.
ThedaCare Regional Medical Center-Appleton earned the Silver Award of Hope, ThedaCare Regional Medical Center-Neenah earned the Gold Award of Hope and ThedaCare Medical Center-Shawano earned the Excellence in Tissue Donation recognition.
“Our dedicated team members care deeply about donor patients and their families,” said Sue Broeren, organ and tissue donation coordinator at ThedaCare Regional Medical Center-Neenah. “We extend our gratitude to families who make the decision at a very difficult time to donate their loved one’s organs and tissue. Those families make it possible for us to have a successful program, and we are incredibly grateful for their compassion for others.”
The UW Organ and Tissue Donation Award of Hope recognizes the comprehensive work of hospitals that achieve or exceed goals that maximize organ donation. The award is based on two measurements. One is the true conversion rate, which calculates the percentage of medically eligible donors who become actual donors. The other measurement is organs transplanted per donor, which evaluates the average number of organs recovered from each donor.
Hospitals can earn a gold, silver or bronze Award of Hope. A rate of organs transplanted per donor of 3.25 earns a bronze award, a true conversion rate of at least 75% earns a silver award, and meeting both metrics earns a gold award.
The Excellence in Tissue Donation Award is given to partner hospitals that achieve at least a 60% consent rate from families when asked by care teams about organ donation. This metric measures the collaborative work between the hospital staff and tissue bank in coordinating communication with patients and families around tissue consent conversations.
“Hospitals play a pivotal role in the life-saving journey of organ donation and transplantation through their compassionate care for donor heroes and the exceptional support of donor families,” said Michael Anderson, executive director of UW Organ and Tissue Donation. “We honor these hospitals and their incredible care teams for working so hard to help ensure that those who are waiting for a transplant will get a second chance at life.”
UW Organ and Tissue Donation is a federally designated organ procurement organization serving more than 100 hospitals in Wisconsin, Michigan and Illinois. The 2023 winners were honored during a ceremony on May 9 in Madison.
ThedaCare recognized for organ, tissue donations
