Tissue donors help provide the gift of sight

26 Jul 2018

27 July 2018 

Cornea donations are the most common tissues donated through St John of God Health Care over the past two years.

St John of God Health Care’s DonateLife Clinical Nurse Specialist (Organ and Tissue Donation) Linda Thomas said cornea donations helped people with poor vision due to eye disease, infection or trauma to see again.

“Cornea donations are life enhancing for the recipients, who can have their sight restored after becoming blind or losing part of their sight due to damage caused by a genetic condition, illness or injury”, she said.

“Almost anyone can donate eye and tissue when they pass away, so it is really important for you to register your donation decision on the Australia Organ Donor Register and let your family know about your decision.

“We were recently able to share organ recipient Dwight O’Neil’s story with clinicians at St John of God Midland Public and Private Hospitals.

“This not only highlighted the new lease on life that Dwight received, we were also able to share the human side of donation with a donor family member, Russ Tuff, sharing his feelings and the process in honouring his loved one’s wishes.”

Linda said during DonateLife Week it was particularly important to raise awareness of how you can register to become a tissue and organ donor.

“Registering online to become a donor and speaking with your family about your decision is important to enable your wishes to be fulfilled,” she said.

“While only a small portion of people can become organ donors, almost anyone can become a tissue donor. Tissue donations can help anywhere between 20 and 30 people and can make a real difference to lives of the recipients.”

DonateLife fast facts at St John of God Health Care

• 11 cornea donations recorded between January and July 2018
• 14 cornea donations recorded in 2017
• Four organ donors from St John of God Health Care since 2013