The organ and tissue donation program in Alberta saw record numbers last year.
In 2024, there was a total of 317 deceased organ and/or tissue donors through the Give Life Alberta program. Officials say those donations led to 423 organs being transplanted in 2024, saving hundreds of lives.
This marks the third straight year that donation rates have gone up in the province, with 273 donors in 2023, and 248 in 2022.
Mike Cahill, a 39-year-old Calgary resident, received a life-saving kidney transplant from a deceased donor in 2024. He had kidney disease and spent over three years on at-home and in-clinic dialysis. “My life was on hold. It felt like having a weight on every limb. It was hard to work up the willpower to go do anything,” Cahill states.
He says he thinks about his donor often. “They had all their life ahead of them, as well. I’m eternally grateful to their family. It definitely was a life-changing decision.”
A single organ donor can save up to eight lives. Meanwhile, a tissue donor can dramatically improve, or sometimes save, up to 75 lives.
Officials say in Alberta, there are over 500 people waiting for life-saving transplants.
“Donation and transplantation makes a huge difference for patients in need of organs or tissues. It can be life-saving. It can have a huge impact on patients’ quality of life,” says Dr. Andreas Kramer, Medical Director of Give Life Alberta.
“Donation can also provide families with some comfort during a time of great loss. The fact that we’re able to provide that option for more families is good news.”
In recent years, the province has started several initiatives to promote and raise awareness about organ and tissue donation. These include:
- The Specialist in End-of-Life Care, Neuroprognostication and Donation program launched in 2021. It involves specialized intensive care physicians working closely with health care teams to ensure high-quality end-of-life care, which can include identifying and caring for potential organ donors. SEND has helped to significantly reduce missed organ donation opportunities.
- In 2023, the province’s Bill 205 — Mandatory Referral legislation — took effect. It directs hospitals to refer all dying patients who could be eligible to donate organs or tissues to a donation program.
- The newly formed Alberta Organ and Tissue Donation Program has united five dedicated health care teams in Edmonton and Calgary, with a provincial office to guide the program.
- In 2024, Alberta increased public awareness efforts, including rebranding AOTDP as Give Life Alberta, creating the user-friendly web page GiveLifeAlberta.ca, and launching the multiple-award-winning public awareness campaign ‘All the Ways’.
- In 2024, Give Life Alberta added four senior donation consultants to partner with hospital leadership teams for professional education to optimize organ and tissue donation practices.
More information about organ and tissue donation in the province is at the Give Life Alberta website.
WITH FILES FROM JUSTIN GOULET, MY LETHBRIDGE NOW STAFF
