UNOS reports April was a record breaking month for organ donations

The United Network for Organ Sharing reported that its organ center set a new record in April for average daily placement of organs for transplant. During April, the UNOS organ center staff placed on average 38.5 organs per day

Activity on certain days during the month was considerably higher than the average, UNOS said in a news release. Over a two-day period on April 16 and 17, Organ Center staff were involved in placing 105 organs.

“We are honored to work with the transplant community and provide the most possible opportunities for people to benefit from the gift of organ donation,” said Tory Boffo, an Organ Placement Specialist who commonly works the night shift. “April is also National Donate Life Month, so the fact that it was a record-setting month for us takes on some added significance.”

To support transplant centers, OPOs and histocompatibility laboratories throughout the United States, the Organ Center is available 24 hours a day, every day of the year. It has been in continual operation since 1982, when it was founded by the South-Eastern Organ Procurement Foundation as the Kidney Center. It became part of the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) in 1984, and it has served since 1986 as the hub of national organ placement assistance called for under the federal Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN) contract.