Behind the Blue: UK's Elaine Milem and KODA's Gretchen Starnes on the Importance of Organ Donation

LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 12, 2018) – April is National Donate Life Month, an opportunity to renew the commitment to save lives through organ and tissue donation. More than 1,000 Kentuckians are currently on the transplant waiting list; in 2017, UK HealthCare performed a record-breaking 208 total transplants.

On this week's episode of Behind the Blue, UK Transplant Center Patient Services Advocate Elaine Milem and Kentucky Organ Donor Affiliates (KODA) Family Aftercare Manager Gretchen Starnes discuss the importance of organ donation, what it means for donors and families, and common misconceptions and myths about the organ donation process.

Additionally, this Friday, UK HealthCare will celebrate National Blue & Green Day as part of Donate Life Month. Faculty, staff and students are encouraged to wear blue and green to celebrate the success of organ, eye and tissue transplantation and the need for registered donors.

As part of the celebration, UK and KODA representatives will host a Donate Life flag-raising ceremony at UK Chandler Hospital to represent their commitment to saving lives through organ and tissue donation. Following the flag-raising, KODA will present the UK Transplant Center with a special sand vase art piece created by donor families in honor of their loved ones. The celebration will begin at UK Chandler Hospital Pavilion A's flagpole at 11 a.m. and will conclude inside the atrium with light refreshments.

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