Organ Donation in BC – Adapting to a Pandemic
BC Transplant’s organ donation team learned to make quick adaptations along the way during an ongoing, and evolving pandemic to ensure life-saving gifts were still a possibility to people in need. It was paramount to be malleable to a changing landscape.
- Screening tools were created to assess donor and hospital risk for COVID-19.
- Resilience rounds were initiated to help offset psychological effects of COVID-19 and burn out.
- Workload increased for hospital staff therefore our team supported hospitals by going on site when possible.
- In-person engagement and education sessions became virtual.
- Many family interactions were done virtually or over the phone due to hospital protocol.
- On going huddles organized to ensure stakeholders were well informed of changes.
- Adjustments were made to the logistics of donation.
Collaboration and communication with all health care partners become vital to the success of donation and transplant at a time when the system is extremely strained. Despite all the obstacles this pandemic has brought to organ donation, we set records for lung and heart transplants in 2020 and are on our way to break the record for deceased donations in 2021. This is a direct result of the commitment of our team and the bedside staff in British Columbia.