Local organizations and health professionals are encouraging the Black community to consider donating organs in August, which is Minority Donor Awareness Month.
“We want our community members to really give this decision in terms of signing up on the organ donor registry or another way of signing up to really give the gift of life to someone in need,” LaKeisha Coleman, manager of community engagement at Mid-America Transplant.
Among African Americans, there is a great deal of hesitancy when it comes to donating organs for those in need, according to LaKeisha Coleman, manager of community engagement at Mid-America Transplant.
“It’s a life-changing decision and it’s one that I think when people think about it, we don’t really understand the depth and importance of the decision because a lot of decisions made day to day, we don’t like to talk about it,” she said.
The national numbers on organ donation tell a somber story about the number of people waiting for an organ.
“What we know is that over 100,000 people are currently listed for a transplant in this country and just about 90,000 of them are waiting on kidney transplants,” she said.
“Of this 90,000 people waiting on a transplant, I would venture to say 60-70% of this group are people of color.”
According to Coleman, the hope is to take this opportunity to educate and bring awareness to the community through National Minority Donor Awareness Month.
Coleman addressed many misconceptions about organ donation, including tales of people who are designated as organ donors on a driver’s license or state-issue ID not receiving life-saving healthcare treatment.
“I think what we have learned in health care is that there are a lot of reasons for these myths exist in communities of color and most of time it is because they have not been treated fairly when it comes to equal access to healthcare,” Coleman said.
“We are responsible for building up the trust of those who have been disenfranchised over the years.
Coleman explained it is a simple process to become a registered organ donor. When you renew or apply for your driver’s license you will be asked if you would like to donate your organs.
“It’s simple yes, this donor designation is reflected on the license or state-issued identification card,” Coleman said.
“We want our community members to really give this decision in terms of signing up on the organ donor registry or another way of signing up to really give the gift of life to someone in need.”
You can also sign up on the donor and tissue registry on the Mid-America Transplant website.
“People of color have the highest need, so we want to take this month and really collaborate with the community and partners to talk about how important it is to save and heal lives,” she said.
Dr. Will Ross, associate dean at WashU Medical School and board member for Mid-America Transplant, oversees organ and tissue donation in our area.
Ross, who specializes in kidney care, provided perspective about how Black individuals are almost four times more likely to develop kidney failure, due to higher rates of heart disease, high blood pressure and diabetes.
“The major cause of heart disease is diabetes, and both are two times more prevalent in the Black community than in other groups,” Ross said.
“With diabetes, it’s easy to point the finger and say there is an issue with lifestyle, but the bigger issue may be with proper medication, access to affordable fresh produce, and access to health care professionals.”
28% of people currently on the national transplant waiting list are Black – but only 15% of donors were Black in 2021, according to statistics from the Mid-America Transplant organization. Ross added his thoughts on ways to provide solutions to the organ shortage.
“If we are sincere about providing health equity to this group, on one hand we should have more access to organs, which is a problem because there aren’t enough organs available for transplants to the population in need,” he said.
“We need to take a more upstream approach and start looking at the root causes of these diseases among African Americans.”
Access to healthcare is one of the factors, or social determinants, which lead to greater health outcomes and life expectancy. Ross said one way to be proactive in fighting diseases is improving access to healthcare.
“We fortunately now have the Medicaid expansion which is going to increase access for a certain population and, it is moving slow, but it’s still moving and getting more African Americans signed up for insurance,” Ross said.
As for organ donation, taking a “culturally-sensitive approach” could lead to the recruitment of more minority organ donors.
“We need to have a culturally-sensitive approach that understands the actual needs of African American patients and interactions with their family members, and we have to increase awareness,” Ross said. “These steps are ongoing of the benefits of organ transplantation; we must make sure that organs that are available are used.”