New Donor Care Unit helps patients, families through organ donation process
LEXINGTON, KY. (June 25, 2025) – UK HealthCare recently opened its Donor Care Unit (DCU), a dedicated space for the care of patients who will be giving the gift of life through organ donation. This unit and its designated care team will also facilitate the transfer of these patients from other hospitals across the Commonwealth to the University of Kentucky Albert B. Chandler Hospital in Lexington while continuing to support their families throughout the organ recovery process. The DCU at UK HealthCare is the first dedicated unit for patients who have consented to organ donation in Kentucky.
“At UK HealthCare, we recognize the emotional weight of the organ donation journey,” said Kevin Hatton, M.D., chief medical officer at UK Chandler Hospital. “In the Donor Care Unit, not only do we ensure our donors get the dignity they deserve, but families will also find a network of support that remains present from admission and complex clinical care to organ recovery and aftercare.”
In 2024, UK HealthCare, along with Kentucky’s regional organ procurement organization Network for Hope, assisted 74 families through the process of preparing their loved ones for organ recovery for transplantation. In this unit, families can spend time with them and receive ongoing support from Network for Hope’s Family Support Coordinator throughout the evaluation, organ recovery and aftercare. Caring for patients in a dedicated unit also ensures support for the organs, leading to better outcomes for the organ recipients. By facilitating the transfer of patients from regional hospitals to Chandler Hospital, families can anticipate a continuity of care and communication throughout their stay. A dedicated team, specially trained in caring for patients with brain death, will be available 24 hours a day.
“Network for Hope is grateful for our partnership with UK HealthCare, and we are excited to see this community-minded organization establish the first Donor Care Unit in the Commonwealth of Kentucky,” said Barry Massa, CEO of Network for Hope. “Having a DCU in such a central location within Kentucky means more lives will be saved and honored through organ donation.”
Up to eight lives can be saved by a single organ donor, and up to 75 people can be healed with donated tissue. More than 1,000 Kentuckians await a life-saving organ transplant. With coordination from hospitals throughout the state and the transfer of patients to Chandler Hospital, more patients can be evaluated, leading to the recovery of more organs and more second chances for Kentuckians waiting for an organ transplant.
Every eight minutes, someone is added to the waiting list; 13 people die each day waiting for an organ transplant. Learn more about organ donation and to join the registry.
UK HealthCare is the hospitals and clinics of the University of Kentucky. But it is so much more. It is more than 10,000 dedicated health care professionals committed to providing advanced subspecialty care for the most critically injured and ill patients from the Commonwealth and beyond. It also is the home of the state’s only National Cancer Institute (NCI)-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center, a Level IV Neonatal Intensive Care Unit that cares for the tiniest and sickest newborns, the region’s only Level 1 trauma center and Kentucky’s top hospital ranked by U.S. News & World Report.
As an academic research institution, we are continuously pursuing the next generation of cures, treatments, protocols and policies. Our discoveries have the potential to change what’s medically possible within our lifetimes. Our educators and thought leaders are transforming the health care landscape as our six health professions colleges teach the next generation of doctors, nurses, pharmacists and other health care professionals, spreading the highest standards of care. UK HealthCare is the power of advanced medicine committed to creating a healthier Kentucky, now and for generations to come.