Need for Organ Donations

I read with interest American Red Cross President Elizabeth Dole’s comments concerning the need for blood donors from the Latino community (March 8). I would add that there is also a critical need for organ donation from our Latino community. There are 38,364 people on our national transplant waiting list and, of this number 3,114 are Latinos. Currently Latinos comprise 33.64% of the patients on our local kidney wait list, yet the number of organ donations from the Latino population is disproportionate to the need.

In the article Dole states, “Although Latinos use great amounts of donated blood, there is a chronic shortage of the blood group used most by Latinos and others in emergencies.” This same concern exists with reference to life-saving organ transplantation. The Latino community has an increased need for kidney transplants due to the high incidence of kidney failure within this population. Of the 3,114 Latinos on our national waiting list, 2,631 are waiting for a kidney.

I applaud Dole and the American Red Cross in their efforts to inform and educate the Latino community about the need for donation from this group. As a Latina, I recognize that our community is a very giving community and our lower donation rate is related to the need for good information and education about the subject and how it affects us.

Organ transplantation is successful. So successful, in fact, that the waiting list continues to grow. Every 20 minutes another name is added to this list. However, there is a large discrepancy between the need for transplant and the rate of donation. During the past few years, we have experienced a relatively flat rate of donation at less than 5,000 per year. As a result, each day eight to 10 people die waiting for a donated organ.

GLORIA GARCIA BOHRER

Southern California Organ Procurement

Center, Los Angeles