Need for organ donors in the state is staggering | One Tammany

When Folsom resident Warren Whittington, 51, received a diabetes diagnosis at age 20, he never imagined that 17 years later, he’d be a transplant patient receiving a kidney and pancreas from an organ donor.

“I thought I’d just manage the diabetes with insulin, but instead, there had already been so much damage to my kidneys that it led to chronic kidney disease, and I landed on dialysis,” he said. “Everyone is closer than they think to knowing someone who needs a transplant. There is one person that you know outside of your immediate family who could need an organ transplant.”

Wittington said within his own family, three people have been organ donor recipients.

Wittington, who is African American, works closely with the Louisiana Organ Procurement Agency and speaks passionately about the need for organ donation and raising awareness, especially within the Black and non-Hispanic communities.

As the organ procurement organization for Louisiana, LOPA seeks to save lives, restore health and enhance medical care through organ and tissue donation. Throughout August, the organization is highlighting the need for organ donation in multiethnic communities by sharing stories from transplant recipients as part of National Multiethnic Donor Awareness Month.

“There is often fear embedded in minority communities; people are afraid to donate because they don’t understand,” Whittington said. “But you don’t take your organs with you when you leave this life. I’ve been listed as an organ donor since age 18 and a blood donor since age 16. Because why not give somebody extra life or a better quality of life?”

There are currently 1,874 Louisiana residents waiting for kidney, pancreas, heart or liver transplants. More than 65% of those waiting are of the African American/non-Hispanic ethnicity, according to statistics from LOPA as of July 28.

This gap is even higher than the national average of 60%, said LOPA President and CEO Brett Gordon.

“Multiethnic communities, specifically within Louisiana’s African American population, have disproportionately higher rates of diabetes, high blood pressure and heart disease — all of which contribute to organ failure, especially kidney failure,” Gordon said.

“National Multiethnic Donor Awareness Month is an opportunity to not only highlight the need, but also to empower our multiethnic communities to take part in the lifesaving gift of donation.”

LOPA says that organs are not matched according to race or ethnicity, but that all patients waiting for an organ transplant will have a better chance of receiving one if there are larger numbers of donors from their ethnic background. Compatible blood types and tissue markers, which are critical qualities for matching, are more likely to be found among members of the same ethnicity.

LOPA Community Educator Shainne Williams said the organization not only shares the need for residents to register as organ donors, but also provides education on healthy living to reduce the risk of needing transplants.

Overall, multiethnic access to transplants is improving. In 2024, nearly half of all organ transplants in the country were performed on multiethnic recipients, and more than 35% of all Louisiana donors were “heroes of color,” she said.

But Gordon said the need for organs in every ethnic category remains staggeringly high.

According to the Health Resources and Services Administration, 13 people die each day waiting for an organ transplant.

“Organ donation is both a precious gift and a limited resource,” Gordon said. “LOPA is committed to maximizing every gift of donation to save and heal as many lives as possible.

Ultimately, we need more people to say ‘yes ‘to donation. We encourage everyone to register as an organ, tissue and eye donor and for those who are able, to consider becoming a living donor.”

National Multiethnic Donor Awareness Month is a collaborative initiative of the National Organ, Eye and Tissue Donation Multicultural Action Group. For information, visit www.lopa.org.