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First donor flag in region unveiled

Sacred Heart promotes donor awareness … the “gift of life”

Spokane, WA - A new tradition in other parts of the country is now in Spokane:  raising a flag to honor organ and tissue donor heroes, to remember those who patiently wait for life-giving organs, to celebrate the lives of recipients … and to raise donor awareness at the same time.

Thanks to the vision and determination of a cadre of people dedicated to helping others, Sacred Heart Medical Center is introducing an organ donor flag this month for the first time anywhere in this region, in collaboration with LifeCenter Northwest (the organ procurement agency for this region), the Northwest Lions Eye Bank and Northwest Tissue. The new flag will be raised for 24 hours with the American flag in front of the Medical Center every time a patient receives an organ transplant or when someone donates tissues or an organ. In fact, when the flag flies for the first time Tuesday, it will be in honor of a kidney transplant occurring simultaneously at the Medical Center.

“As the only provider of heart/kidney transplants in the region, Sacred Heart is committed to help raise donor awareness, and the flag is one visible way to do this,” says Hugh Polensky, director of Sacred Heart’s Chaplaincy Services, which is spearheading the project. “When one person loses a life tragically, there is potential to save more than eight other lives through organ donation—it’s the right thing to do,” he added.

In May 2005, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services awarded its first ever Organ Donation Medals of Honor to hospitals achieving organ donation rates of 75 percent or higher in a 12-month period. Sacred Heart Medical Center was one of just 184 hospitals nationwide to receive this honor and the only one in Eastern Washington.

Every year, Sacred Heart’s teams of cardiac and kidney experts perform about 65 transplants for residents region-wide. In fact, the Medical Center is one of the leaders nationally for its cardiac and kidney programs.

“There are almost 90,000 people in the United States currently waiting for an organ transplant,” says Diana Clark, president and CEO of LifeCenter Northwest. “The U.S. is far from maximizing its supply of available organs.  Although studies have shown 90 percent of people are in favor of donation, many don’t know the steps to take to become a donor,” she added. As a result, an average of 18 people on the transplant waiting list die each day.

In Washington, registering your wish to be an organ donor is easy. Here are some resources:

At a glance:
Transplants at Sacred Heart Medical Center
Sacred Heart is the only medical center in the region to offer organ transplants, attracting people from surrounding states who are seeking care from an experienced team of transplant-training physicians, surgeons, technicians and nurses. In fact:

  • Heart transplant survival rates at Sacred Heart are among the highest in the country. Patient survival for heart transplants is 95.8 percent, far exceeding the national expected survival rate of 81.8 percent. 15 heart transplants were successfully performed at Sacred Heart in 2005.
  • 50 kidney transplants occurred in 2005 at Sacred Heart (25 from living donors and 25 from deceased donors). In fact, the first altruistic donor transplant was performed at Sacred Heart last year.
  • The first ever heart/kidney transplant in the region was performed at Sacred Heart in 2003, and surgeons at the Medical Center were the first to implant a permanent heart pump in the western United States.
  • One of the most technologically-advanced surgery centers opened at Sacred Heart in 2004, offering all the latest in tools and technology.

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