How to Find the Family That Donated Your Child's Organ

As a grateful parent of a child who received an organ donation, you may want to express your thanks to the donor's family. The process of contacting the family of your child's organ donor can be very emotional, but ultimately fulfilling for you and the family. Organ recipients commonly desire information about their donor, and often donor families appreciate hearing from recipients. Each transplant center has different procedures for contacting donor families, but you can begin your outreach by following certain guidelines.

Things You'll Need

• Unsealed envelope
• Sheet of paper with your child's name and date of transplant
• Letter to the family

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Instructions

Writing Your Letter

• 1

  Tell the family about your child, including first name, home state and any brothers or sisters.

• 2

  Acknowledge the donor family's gift and thank them.

• 3

  Tell the family how long your child waited for an organ donation and what that time was like for your family.

• 4

  Explain how the donated organ has improved your child's health and life. Pick one specific activity that your child can now enjoy that he couldn't before the operation.

What Not to Say

• 5

  Carefully consider any religious comments, as you do not know the beliefs of the donor's family.

• 6

  Don't include contact information, such as phone number, address or city. If the donor family decides to respond to your letter, they can reach out to you through the organ procurement agency.

• 7

  Do not list the name of the transplant center at which your child received the organ. All donor/patient identity information is highly confidential.

Sending Your Letter

• 8

  Place your letter in an unsealed envelope, as transplant centers review all communication with donor families to ensure that the identity of patients and donors isn't compromised.

• 9

  Include a piece of paper with your child's name and date of transplant surgery in the envelope. This will help the organ transplant coordinator identify your child's donor.

• 10

  Submit the envelope to your organ transplant coordinator. The coordinator will then send it on to the organ procurement agency, which will mail it to the family.