One of Facebook’s newest additions is the ability to add a “Life Event” and note oneself as an organ donor. The user is then directed to a state website to register as an organ donor.People waiting for organsGeorgia TennesseeKidneys 3,185 2,113Heart 50 85Lung 20 10Liver 224 190Pancreas 4 7Kidney/Pancreas 82 9Organ transplantsJanuary 1988-January 2012Georgia TennesseeKidneys 7,538 7,940Heart 1,233 1,370Lung 345 398Liver 2,427 2,554Pancreas 35 154Kidney/Pancreas 485 467Source: United Network for Organ SharingTo sign up to be an organ donorIn Tennessee: www.donatelifetn.orgIn Georgia: www.donatelifegeorgia.org
Former U.S. Sen. Bill Frist used to carry a handful of organ-donor cards with him, hoping that by passing them out, he might get a few people to donate their organs.
This week, the former Senate majority leader from Tennessee and heart transplant surgeon was involved in an effort that essentially passed out organ-donor cards to millions of people in one day.
On Tuesday, Facebook launched a feature allowing users to share their decision to be an organ donor and link them to state registries to sign up online.
“Now we can touch 20 million people in a period of several hours — the power of that is exciting,” Frist said.