Hospital Staff Guide
Saving lives through donation and transplantation is not possible without the help of healthcare professionals. By working together, we can make a difference by providing compassionate care to donor patients and their families as well as help individuals waiting for a life-saving organ or tissue transplant.
Communicating with New England Donor Services
Your identification of a potential organ and tissue donor and subsequent timely referral to New England Donor Services (NEDS) is the first step toward saving lives through donation and transplantation. Donation and transplantation can occur at any time. NEDS staff are available 365 days a year, 24 hours a day. You can contact a NEDS coordinator by calling 800-446-6362.
Organ Donation
Any ventilated patient who has had a non-recoverable injury or condition should be referred to NEDS prior to any of the following interventions:
- Initiation of therapeutic hypothermia
- Discussion of DNR
- Discussion of limitation (DNE) or removal (CMO) of mechanical or pharmacological support
- Initiation of brain death testing
Tissue Donation
Any patient who has died may have potential to help through tissue donation. Refer all deaths to NEDS within one hour of asystole.
CMS Regulations
Notifying NEDS in a timely manner (within one hour of meeting any of the criteria listed above) is consistent with the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) federal regulations on hospital responsibility for working with local Organ Procurement Organizations. A timely notification allows NEDS staff the time needed to travel to the hospital, review necessary information to determine medical suitability for donation and collaborate with you on when an introduction of NEDS staff is appropriate.
Authorization for Donation
NEDS facilitates the donation discussion and obtains authorization for donation from the legal next of kin. Our Family Services Coordinators are highly skilled staff who are trained in addressing concerns, dispelling myths and engaging in comprehensive discussions about the donation process. CMS regulations require NEDS staff to engage in detailed training annually.
NEDS staff collaborate with the healthcare team to determine readiness for the discussion and together make a plan, including specific language, for introducing NEDS to the family. Hospital staff should not make mention of donation independent of NEDS.
For more information about the donation process, please email NEDSeducation@neds.org.