Message from the Minister of Health - Organ and Tissue Donation Awareness Week

April 23-29, 2017

Did you know that a few minutes of your time could save up to eight lives and enhance the lives of more than 75 people? An organ donation can bring freedom to someone who would otherwise be tied to a dialysis machine, or can prevent someone from becoming one of the hundreds of people who die every year waiting for a transplant.

During National Organ and Tissue Donation Awareness Week, I am calling on all Canadians to learn more about becoming an organ and tissue donor. Anyone can be considered as a potential donor. And did you know that some organs, such as a kidney, or tissues, such as a part of a liver, can come from living donors?

More than 4,500 people in Canada are waiting for an organ transplant, yet only a fraction of Canadians are registered donors. This has resulted in a persistent shortage of certain organs, such as kidneys.

The Government of Canada, along with the provinces and territories, has provided more than $64 million since 2008 to Canadian Blood Services to facilitate the inter-provincial coordination of the organ and tissue donation and transplantation system. Health Canada also ensures the safety of Canadians by regulating the safety of the donation and transplantation system through the Safety of Human Cells, Tissues and Organs for Transplantation Regulations.

As Minister of Health and as a physician, I know first-hand the critical need for organ and tissue donations. I urge you start the conversation about organ and tissue donation with family and friends. It is important they know your wishes and you know those of your family. I also invite you to visit the Government of Canada’s Organ and Tissue Donation web page to learn more. Together we can help save lives.

The Honourable Jane Philpott, P.C., M.P.
Minister of Health