Clinicians Saving Lives: A Comprehensive Program to Improve Organ Donation

Battista, Alice

Saturday, 16 November 2013

Alice Battista, MSN, RN
Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center, Baton Rouge, LA
Samantha R Boudreaux, RN
Louisiana Organ Procurement Agency, Metairi, LA
Kathy D Walton, RN, BSN
Trauma Neuro Critical Care Unit, Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center, Baton Rouge, LA
Cullen A Hebert, MD FACP, FCCP
Critical Care Medicine Service, Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center, Baton Rouge, LA
Deborah H. Ford, MSN, RN
Administration, Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center, Baton Rouge, LA

Learning Objective 1: To discuss how an interdisciplinary team at one hospital led the way, through innovations and process changes, to improve organ donation conversion rate

Learning Objective 2: To discuss how through transforming nursing practice an organization wide culture change occurred moving to a culture of understanding and acceptance of organ donation

In 2003, the United States Department of Health and Human Services developed the Gift of Life Donation Initiative challenging hospitals to achieve at least a 75% organ donation conversion rate. To support hospitals The Joint Commission identified best organ donation practices from six top performing facilities. Our Lady of the Lake RMC partnered with Louisiana Organ Procurement Agency (LOPA) to adopt these best practices, but consistently fell short of the goal. Recognizing the significant impact we could have on the lives of the over 110,000 individuals across our nation awaiting lifesaving organ transplants, a “LOPA Workgroup” was assembled June 2010 when our conversion rate was 55%.

Early in our journey our nurses became engaged and empowered and started identifying innovative strategies to raise awareness and understanding of organ donation. Over the past three years more than 15 innovations were implemented. During a recent staff survey the following innovations were identified as having the greatest impact on the improving organizational culture: 1) Donor/recipient wall updated annually 2) Recipient information flyers for staff 3) Donor family/ recipient rounding on units 4) Gift of life service/ butterfly release annually 5) Flying donate life flag to honor every donor.

As a result of our efforts our conversion rate increased to 92% in 2011 with 30 organ donors saving 107 lives. In 2012, our conversion rate was 91%: 33 organ donors saved 93 lives and YTD our conversion rate is 94% with 15 donors saving 42 lives. As important, we saw a transformation in the way our nurses viewed organ donation. Our nurses now appreciate that when they cannot save the life of the patient they are caring for, they can save the lives of those awaiting organ donations. Our clinicians are now saving lives by transforming end of life to the gift of life.

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