Jackson-Madison Co. makes record breaking year in lives saved by organ donations
In 2023, the Jackson-Madison County General Hospital experienced a record-breaking year with the number of lives saved through organ donations.
On Friday, the work of the hospital and the importance of organ donation was recognized.
With a proclamation presented to organ donor recipient Don Kimberly, Jackson Mayor Scott Conger declared April as "Donate Life Month" encouraging citizens to become donors.
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Through a partnership with Tennessee Donor Services (TDS), the Jackson-Madison County General Hospital served 26 donors, saving 56 lives.
After being diagnosed with nonalcoholic cirrhosis of the liver, Kimberly qualified to join the transplant waitlist and was able to eventually receive a life-saving liver transplant.
"I've had really no issues since then," Kimberly said. "I'm enjoying life, and I dedicated everything I could do to get other people to at least put on there that they want to donate."
TDS is a nonprofit, organ procurement agency working to save lives through organ, eye, and tissue donations.
More than 100,00 individuals nationwide are waiting for an organ transplant and about 3,000 of them are Tennesseans.
"Unfortunately, many of them will pass away because we simply do not have enough donations to meet the need," TDS External Affairs Coordinator Byron Elam said.
TDS reports that approximately 44% of eligible Tennesseans are registered donors, compared to the 54% national average.
"Our work is very somber every day, we deal with grieving families mostly," Elam said.
"So we come at opportunities like this to sort of see the other side of our work, to see folks like Don who are thriving and doing well after receiving the life-saving gift of a transplant."
Sarah Best is a reporter for The Jackson Sun.
This article originally appeared on Jackson Sun: Organ donation recipient shares story, record-breaking year in Jackson
