The Northern Michigan University School of Nursing participated in the Gift of Life Campus Challenge to register organ donors in 2021. Gift of Life Michigan recently announced 2021 was a record-breaking year for organ donation in the state. From left, in a winter 2021 photo, are NMU Professor Kary Jacobson, nursing instructor and GOL faculty adviser; Kirsten Peek, a student nurse who is involved in public relations with the Student Nurses Association; Michelle Andriacchi, nursing professor GOL faculty adviser; Olivia Arntsen, student nurse and vice president of the SNA; and Alyssa Milski, student nurse and president of the SNA. (Photo courtesy of Michelle Andriacchi)

MARQUETTE — We live in a time where it feels as if we only see the worst in people. As politics and cultural disputes become more and more common, the idea of taking care of strangers can seem like a relic from a long-gone era.

However, there is hope. The recently released statistics from Michigan-based nonprofit Gift of Life show that people are still willing to look out for their neighbors, in one of the most important ways possible: lifesaving organ donations.

The Gift of Life Michigan announced that 2021 was a record-breaking year, with 429 donors being responsible for 1,089 organ donations, a 14% increase in the state. This rise in organ donation can be seen a trend nationwide, as more than 400,000 organ donations were recorded across the country in 2021.

There is still much work to be done however, as the Gift of Life estimates that at least 2,500 people are on the organ donation waitlist in Michigan, with 106,000 waiting for an organ donation across the country, a number that includes people of all ages, races and gender identities.

Unfortunately, 17 people who are on the waiting list die every day, which underlines the importance of organ donation.

The Health Resources and Services Administration estimates that every organ donor can save eight lives and enhance the lives of up to 75 more individuals through their donations, as the donation of vital tissues can help with everything from restoring sight to the blind, to skin grafts for victims of fires and repair of congenital heart defects.

Each donation can drastically improve quality and length of life for recipients of the donations. Gift of Life Michigan estimates that heart and liver donations can extend the five-year survival rate in at least 70% of recipients. A pancreas donation can extend lives for an average of 10 years and lung donations can extend lives from 12-15 years on average.

They also estimate that 1 in every 20 people will benefit from a tissue donation at some point in their lives.

According to the HRSA, kidneys are currently the most desperately needed organs.

In 2020, nearly 90,000 people in the United States were on the waiting list for kidneys, with only roughly 20,000 being available. It is estimated that every 10 minutes, someone else is added to the waiting list, so there has never been a better time to sign up to be a donor.

To register to become a donor, visit www.michigan.gov or check the organ donor box when renewing your driver’s license. People can also register to become a donor at giftoflifemichigan.org/become-a-donor.

More information about organ donation, including a full, step-by-step breakdown of the entire organ donation process can be found on the Gift of Life’s website at www.giftoflifemichigan.org.

Randy Crouch can be reached at 906-228-2500, ext. 242. His email address is rcrouch@miningjournal.net.