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. 2010 May;210(5):708-15, 715-7.
doi: 10.1016/j.jamcollsurg.2010.02.037.

Minority organ donation: the power of an educated community

Clive O Callender  1 , Patrice V Miles
Affiliations

Minority organ donation: the power of an educated community

Clive O Callender et al. J Am Coll Surg. 2010 May.

Abstract

Background: In 1978 in Washington, DC, we became aware of the scarcity of minority donors, especially African Americans.

Study design: From then until now, 4 decades later, we have been involved in a grass roots effort emphasizing community education and empowerment combined with the use of mass media, which has increased minority donation rates exponentially. This program was initiated with a $500 grant from Howard University and was subsequently funded by National Institutes of Health grants and other funding totaling more than $10 million between 1993 and 2008.

Results: Between 1990 and 2008, minority donations percentages have doubled (15% to 30%). African-American organ donors per million (ODM) have quadrupled from 8 ODM to 53 ODM between 1982 and 2008.

Conclusions: The investment of $10 million may seem substantial when we look at the cost-to-benefit ratio associated with the cost savings of $135,000 per donor. But it is small when compared with the more than $200 million saved by kidney donors alone, which is associated with the expected increase in the percentage of minority donors to 35% by 2010, or the equivalent of 1,750 minority donors.

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Conflict of interest statement

Disclosure Information: Nothing to disclose.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Racial breakdown of the kidney transplant waiting list. Minorities total: 61% (as of November 2009). Source: UNOS/OPTN Database.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Minority Organ Tissue Transplant Education Program (MOTTEP) evaluation model at the participant level.
Figure 3
Figure 3
All of the factors work together to determine the outcomes of the Minority Organ Tissue Transplant Education Program (MOTTEP) outreach strategies.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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References

    1. Callender CO. The results of transplantation in blacks: just the tip of the iceberg. Transplant Proc. 1989;21:3407–3410. - PubMed
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    1. Callender CO, Hall LE, Yeager CL, et al. Organ donation and blacks: a critical frontier. N Engl J Med. 1991;325:442–444. - PubMed

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