Types of Donation

Donation After Brain Death

Brain death happens after a severe and irreversible injury to the brain, when all brain and brainstem function permanently stops. This means that there is absolutely no brain activity and that brain activity will not return. At this point, the person is incapable of surviving without mechanical support. It is legally and medically recognized as death and is different from a coma, where some brain activity may still be present.

This determination is made by healthcare providers who are not part of the donation or transplant process. They perform careful, thorough testing and follow established criteria to determine if someone is brain dead. 

Only after death is declared can organ donation occur. We know this is an incredibly difficult and overwhelming time. NJ Sharing Network is here to support families with compassion, honesty, and respect for their loved one and whatever decisions they make.

Donation After Circulatory Death (DCD)

Sometimes, a person is not brain dead but has injuries or illness so severe that they cannot survive without machines such as a ventilator. When every possible treatment has been tried and there is no hope for recovery, families and the medical team may make the difficult decision to remove mechanical support.

This decision is always separate from any conversations about organ donation, and NJ Sharing Network is not involved in that choice. After this decision has been made, NJ Sharing Network will be brought in to speak with the family about organ donation. 

Organ donation will only occur if the heart stops within two hours of removing the ventilator. The healthcare team will observe a waiting period of five minutes to ensure the heart will not restart. Once death is officially declared by the healthcare team, donation after circulatory death can proceed.

If the patient continues to breathe on their own beyond the two-hour window, organ donation cannot occur. The patient will continue to be cared for by the healthcare teame until death occurs.

We know this can be heartbreaking for families who had hoped their loved one could save lives through donation. NJ Sharing Network will continue to honor the patient's and family's decision to help others through the gift of donation and provide long term support to the families. 

One organ donor can save up to 8 lives. Organs that can be donated include: 

Tissue and Eye Donation 

Tissue donation differs from organ donation in several important ways. Unlike organ donation, a person does not need to be on mechanical support to be a tissue donor. Also, most tissue transplants do not require a waiting list—tissues are available when they are needed. While organs must be transplanted within hours of recovery, donated tissue can be preserved and stored for up to five years. Through tissue and eye donation, one donor can help heal and improve the lives of dozens of people in meaningful ways.

Examples of donated tissues include:

• Bones and tendons: Used to replace or reconstruct tissue damaged by trauma or tumors. Donor tendons are commonly used to repair sports injuries such as Achilles tendon ruptures.

• Heart valves: Replace damaged valves and restore normal heart function. Valves transplanted into children can grow as they grow.

• Veins and arteries: Support procedures such as coronary artery bypass surgery and help restore blood flow for patients with diabetes or other vascular diseases.

• Skin: Used to treat severe burns, repair cleft palates, and support breast reconstruction following mastectomy.

• Corneas: Restore sight for people who are blind.

One tissue donor can enhance the lives over over 75 people.
Tissue that can be donated include: 

Living Donation

Living donation is when a living person donates an organ or part of an organ to a person in need of a transplant. Living kidney donation is possible because we can live a healthy life with one functioning kidney. Living liver donation is possible because the liver consists of two lobes, one of which can be donated to someone in need. Both lobes will regenerate to normal size and function generally within 6-12 weeks.

To be a living donor, you must be in good health, age 18 or older, and have normal kidney or liver function. Living donation can be one of the following:

• Directed: A living donor gives the organ to a specific person, typically a friend or family member.

• Non-directed: An altruistic living donor gives the organ to an individual neither named nor specified by the donor.

• Kidney Paired Donation: A donated kidney that would not be a medical match for a directed donation match is swapped with another donated kidney so each recipient receives a compatible transplant.