BS: Organ donor question Jan 2009

Subject: BS: Organ donor question Jan 2009
From: gnu
Date: 10 Feb 09 - 06:46 AM

This is NOT about IF one should be an organ donor.

Just got my New Brunswick, Canada Medicare renewal form. Included is a form for becoming an organ donor. Fill it out and sign it and your new Medicare card will say "DONOR/DONNEUR" on the face of the card. Or not.

I believe this information is my and my familiy's personal business and I do not think it should be on a card which must be presented to health care services. It is not necessary as this information is already "in the computer". It is certainly not necessary for a receptionist at a health clinic to be privy to such personal information. (Also, if one does not have a driver's license, provincial government departments ask for the Medicare card when accessing services.)

Any reason this information should be "public"?

Subject: RE: BS: Organ donor question Jan 2009
From: freda underhill
Date: 10 Feb 09 - 07:17 AM

Scenario:

You are sitting by the river fishing, minding your own business, and a big moose gallops towards you and runs you over. A passing canooist notices your body by the riverside and takes you by canoe ambulance to the closest hospital. the moose has trampled all over you and you are dead on arrival.

In the canoe ambulance they look at your wallet, see your medicare card and that you are a donor. They immediately place you on ice, and call up the hospital and Mervyn Huckabee and tell him at last they have found a compatible donor for a new brain. They get you to the hospital using a special drip to keep the blood flowing to your brain.

After the operation, Mervyn wakes up and the doctor asks him how he feels. Apart from having a sore head, he feels fine, but then says, "Doc, why did I survive?"

The Doc says, mervyn, if those clever ambulance people hadn't known from the card that gnu was a donor, he wouldn't have been fresh enough to operate on when he arrived. And besides, the computer was down."

Mervyn was very grateful, but noticed that he had developed a wry sense of humour and a liking for folk music.

Subject: RE: BS: Organ donor question Jan 2009
From: gnu
Date: 10 Feb 09 - 07:57 AM

The computers at the hospital do not go down as they are double redundant (two backups). The electricity at the hospital does not go down as they have a UPS and auto transfer switchgear that runs the gennies to full cap in 11 seconds max. The ambulance EMTs have satcomm.

Of course, none of that would apply anyway because ain't no moose gonna mess with me.

Subject: RE: BS: Organ donor question Jan 2009
From: GUEST,LTS pretending to work
Date: 10 Feb 09 - 08:32 AM

OK, for moose, substitute racoon....


LTS

Subject: RE: BS: Organ donor question Jan 2009
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 10 Feb 09 - 11:41 AM

It's on the face of my driver's license. I don't mind.

SRS

Subject: RE: BS: Organ donor question Jan 2009
From: gnu
Date: 10 Feb 09 - 01:10 PM

I think mine's on the back of my driver's license. And, in the medical records. And, known to my relatives.

Subject: RE: BS: Organ donor question Jan 2009
From: gnu
Date: 30 Nov 09 - 07:12 PM

So... the paperwork is almost done.

I am going to medical school at The uni of Dalhousie, Nova Scotia. I always wanted to go. I scored 100% in biology in all grades in high school... never wrote a final exam. Shoulda went instead of going to UNB Engineering. Now, I will go, finally!

All expenses paid!

I get to hang out with the cute young chics at med school late at night and all that. For three years!

Then, after they are all done admiring.... you know... they fire me up and ship me back home... all paid for!

What a deal! NO funeral with all the wailing and misery... no funeral expenses... no nothing... no shit!

Check it out. Donate your remains (even if thay are not as impressive as mine) to a med school. As a smart shopper, you need to check it out.

Subject: RE: BS: Organ donor question Jan 2009
From: Sandra in Sydney
Date: 30 Nov 09 - 08:44 PM

clever gnu!

Subject: RE: BS: Organ donor question Jan 2009
From: Becca72
Date: 01 Dec 09 - 09:05 AM

Speaking as someone who works at a hospital whose computer system totally crashed not 2 months ago, it can happen.
And as Freda stated above, at the scene of an accident that cards is going to be the tip off to EMTs that you are a donor.
Also, it's something to be proud of. I also don't find that to be personal information at all. It's not like they are asking you to put "boxers or briefs" on the front of your card...

Subject: RE: BS: Organ donor question Jan 2009
From: VirginiaTam
Date: 01 Dec 09 - 11:32 AM

Another organ donor question

What if a someone who worked part time wage job for the public sector, planned to donate a kidney to someone. And the employer refused to give her sick time to recover from the operation. She has to take time off with no pay to do this, because she has volunteered.

However, the same employer has a policy to cover bone marrow donation. Employees can have sick cover on normal pay for this type of donation.

At present, not certain whether it is manager or HR that refused this.

For the record this is a county council in the UK.

Subject: RE: BS: Organ donor question Jan 2009
From: SINSULL
Date: 01 Dec 09 - 12:20 PM

Why ask us Miss Tam? If it is company/council policy, take it up with them. Offhand I would say that bone marrow donation takes minutes - they actually take blood for testing and only take marrow if you are a required match. A kidney surgery takes six weeks for recovery IF you have no side effects.

Does the donor not have vacation time that he can use? Just a thought.

Subject: RE: BS: Organ donor question Jan 2009
From: VirginiaTam
Date: 01 Dec 09 - 01:32 PM

Wage paid employees don't receive annual leave time. If they opt to take time off without pay that is their choice.

I just thought that this huge county council would applaud this selfless act by at least offering half the time for recuperation. I guess I am just disgusted because there is all this lip service paid by the high salaried managers and directors that public sector work is a work of dedication to the community. Then they go and say "No we won't subsidise your sense of giving back to the community" to someone who is one of the lowest paid in the council. It is stingy in comparison to the endless trips to Belgium, France, China and the USA that the big wigs take and the travel and extra housing allowances all done on the back of the taxpayer.

When I worked in the US there were internal programs in which employees could donate part of their vacation time to fellow employees in such circumstances. Doubt I would ever see anything like that here in UK especially in the public sector.

Subject: RE: BS: Organ donor question Jan 2009
From: Jack the Sailor
Date: 01 Dec 09 - 01:49 PM

Gnu, I think the driver's license is the right place. But it would not bother me to have it on the Medicare card. When I lived in Newfoundland and Ontario by the way I did not carry my card. I just gave the doctors/hospitals my number. Can you not do the same in N.B.?

Subject: RE: BS: Organ donor question Jan 2009
From: gnu
Date: 01 Dec 09 - 05:51 PM

Dunno, JtS... I just think private stuff should be private. If my family knows and the computer knows, why should someone I don't know know? There is no reason for it to be public... NONE.

Subject: RE: BS: Organ donor question Jan 2009
From: Arnie
Date: 02 Dec 09 - 09:03 AM

I carry an organ donor card and have done so for years. In the UK this is simply a separate credit-card sized card that fits in your wallet/purse and does not have to be seen by anyone else - unless of course the worst happens and a police officer or ambulance driver is going through your possessions. Given the shortage of donor organs, and the lengthening queue of patients awaiting transplants, I just think it makes sense. Of course some religions require you to be buried with all your body parts together, so it's understandable if they don't want to be donors. Thanks to an anonymous donor, we can still enjoy Swarb's fiddle playing!

Subject: RE: BS: Organ donor question Jan 2009
From: SINSULL
Date: 02 Dec 09 - 09:33 AM

I have to admit, Miss Tam, I would be shocked if my company did not support an organ donor with at least some paid time off. But the company is exceptional when it comes to their employees.

I am no longer shocked at the hypocrisy in the public vs. private actions of community spirited bigwigs. My brother worked for a company whose owners were on the board of directors for a mental health organization. But when he had a break down and had to be hospitalized with serious depression they tried to get him to quit by threatening him with a lawsuit oover business lost as a result of his poor work performance. If he quit, he could not get unemployment insurance. They fired him.
A longterm employee with (up until his breakdown) a sterling work history with promotions, bonuses and raises fired while he was suicidal. Real nice. But they still proudly accept the awards and accolades for their public spirited support of the mentally ill. I try not to wish them a special place in hell.

By the way, after almost five years of therapy and menial jobs my brother recovered and is now VP of another larger company. He crosses paths with his previous employer occasionally.

Subject: RE: BS: Organ donor question Jan 2009
From: VirginiaTam
Date: 02 Dec 09 - 12:37 PM

God Mary... That's some story. Glad things worked out for your brother.

Yep. It is bad in the UK public sector. Soon it won't be anyone but the bigwgs who abuse leave and budgets in effect taxpayer money working for the council. We back office staff will be outsourced to private sector partners. IBM in this case. Maybe IBM will treat us and pay us better. But I doubt it.

Subject: RE: BS: Organ donor question Jan 2009
From: Lizzie Cornish 1
Date: 02 Dec 09 - 12:45 PM

I think the sooner we stop using 'live' dead body parts and get into prosthetics, the better...

Lizzie (who's had many a grizzly conversation with morticians who been picking over their latest clients to see if any are 'suitable' for corneal grafting) Ugh!

Bring back Spiritual Respect for the Dead.

Subject: RE: BS: Organ donor question Jan 2009
From: VirginiaTam
Date: 02 Dec 09 - 02:15 PM

Lizzie that doesn't make sense

Spiritual Respect implies respect for the soul/spirit not the body.

I for one think anything that can be recycled to save or improve another life should be.

The body is nothing more than a suit of clothes.

Think I'll open a Shift That Mortal Coil charity shop. Hire a proper Igor type to manage it. Donate your unwanted kidneys et al here.

Subject: RE: BS: Organ donor question Jan 2009
From: Crow Sister (off with the fairies)
Date: 02 Dec 09 - 03:58 PM

"picking over their latest clients"

Grotesque language, utterly disrespectful to those who have opted to gift their sight upon death, to a blind person.

Ugh indeed LC. Bad job!

Subject: RE: BS: Organ donor question Jan 2009
From: SINSULL
Date: 02 Dec 09 - 04:17 PM

Barry Finn was on his fourth liver when his heart gave out. Rita Ferrara enjoys someone else's heart. There are others on Mudcat who are still with us due to the doctors who picked over dead clients for suitable organs. Their work is not grotesque. I have tremendous Spiritual Respect for the donors and their families as well as the doctors able to make these miracles happen.

Subject: RE: BS: Organ donor question Jan 2009
From: Folkiedave
Date: 02 Dec 09 - 06:49 PM

Bring back Spiritual Respect for the Dead.

I intend to leave as much of my body as possible to donorship and medical research.

All except my areshole. I am not sure who to leave that to yet. But ideas are forming......

Subject: RE: BS: Organ donor question Jan 2009
From: SINSULL
Date: 02 Dec 09 - 06:53 PM

They use them in cheap hot dogs, Dave. Pigs' anuses, I mean. Not that you're a pig...guess I better quit while I'm a head - body part pun intended.

Subject: RE: BS: Organ donor question Jan 2009
From: freda underhill
Date: 03 Dec 09 - 08:11 AM

you hear these strange stories of someone with a donated organ who develops a taste for pickles...

there are so many strange implications in that. I guess developing a taste for folk music is a good thing, however it's achieved. but some methods are more complex..